‘Kadiwa ng Pasko’ to run every payday until Dec. 31 —DA exec

The “Kadiwa ng Pasko” initiative of the Marcos administration will run at least every payday until the end of the year, an official of the Department of Agriculture (DA) said Saturday.

“Ang instruction po ay ipagpatuloy ang ‘Kadiwa ng Pasko’ hanggang matapos ang taon, every payday, every other two weeks,” DA Agri-business and Marketing Service officer-in-charge Director Joubert de Sagun said in an interview on Dobol B TV.

(The instruction is to continue the “Kadiwa ng Pasko” until the end of the year, every payday, every other two weeks.)

The Kadiwa ng Pasko project was launched nationwide on Wednesday by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., who also serves as the concurrent secretary of the DA.

The project aims to provide a market to the country’s local agricultural producers while at the same time giving the public access to affordable and high-quality products.

Consumers can buy National Food Authority (NFA) rice for as low as P25 per kilogram at the Kadiwa ng Pasko rolling stores.

In his remarks during the launch, Marcos said the government is close to achieving the aspiration of lowering the price of rice to P20 per kilogram.

It was his campaign promise to reduce the price of rice to as low as P20 per kilo. Marcos said the aspiration hinges on fixing the value chain, or the series of stages involved in producing a product or service that is sold to consumers, with each state adding to the value of the product or service.

Fourteen sites were opened simultaneously across the country, including 11 in the National Capital Region, one in Tacloban City, one in Davao De Oro, and one in Koronadal City, South Cotabato.

The lead agency of the project is the DA.

Support agencies include the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), and Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE).

“Ang konsepto ng Kadiwa ay direct from producers to consumers... 'Yung mga lugar na pinaglalagyan nito ay walang bayad sa renta, walang middleman kaya mababa ang presyo ng mga produkto,” de Sagun said.

(The concept of Kadiwa is direct from producers to consumers. The places where these are put in have no rental fees, no middlemen that’s why the prices of products are lower.) —KG, GMA Integrated News