Manila, Oct. 27 -- A PHP237 million World Bank (WB)-funded project meant to modernize banana chips processing in three Leyte towns will soon start following its approval, the Department of Agriculture (DA) said on Monday.

The Eastern Visayas Banana Processing and Marketing Enterprise (EVBPME) is the first subproject in the entire Visayas Cluster to receive a No Objection Letter 1 (NOL1) for 2025 from the Philippine Rural Development Project (PRDP) through the Regional Project Coordination Office 8 (RPCO 8).

The DA regional office here said the approval is a major boost to regional competitiveness and farmer empowerment. The NOL1 clearance allows the release of project funds and signals the start of implementation.

"This project exempli...