DSWD: 3K families to get food stamps in program's pilot run

The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) is planning to conduct the pilot implementation of the administration’s food stamps programs in municipalities affected by conflict and calamities, Secretary Rex Gatchalian said Wednesday.

In a media forum, Gatchalian said the pilot run will last for six months and is aimed to help at least 3,000 families from targeted communities including the Bangsamoro Region and the Caraga Region.

“Were still fine-tuning it kasi nasa loob pa kami ng design stage pero ang ina-identify ng World Food Program (WFP) ay dapat iba-iba sila ng anyo na lugar,” the official told reporters at the Kapihan sa Manila Bay.

(We're still fine-tuning because we're still at the design stage but the WFP said it should be municipalities of different modalities.)

“‘Yung isa BARMM kasi former conflict area, mataas ang poverty incidence. Two, calamity-stricken areas that’s why we’re looking at an LGU (local government unit) in CARAGA, and then ‘yung isa hinahanap namin geographically disadvantaged and isolated areas. It could be a mountain municipality or an island municipality,” he said.

(One of the communities we're considering is BARMM because it was a former conflict area and has a high poverty incidence. Second is calamity-stricken areas, hence, Caraga, and then geographically disadvantaged and isolated areas. It could be a mountain municipality or an island municipality.)

“We’re also studying urban poor clusters kasi alam natin na ang pockets of poverty ay urban sector,” Gatchalian added.

(We’re also studying urban poor clusters because we know that the pockets of poverty are in the urban sector.)

Dubbed as "Walang Gutom 2027: Food Stamp Program," the project aims to assist targeted households to address involuntary hunger in the country.

The DSWD earlier said it would provide "electronic benefit transfer (EBT) cards" that will be loaded with food credits amounting to P3,000 per month to purchase a select list of food commodities from the DSWD registered or accredited local retailers.

“We're empowering them. Papapuntahin sa grocery, papipiliin sila, (we’ll let them go to groceries) we're giving them the power to choose,” Gatchalian said.

The official reiterated the Asian Development Bank extended $3 million for its pilot implementation and said it would need P40 billion to continue the program. He also expressed hope more Filipino families will benefit from it after the six-month initial run.

“After 6 months, hopefully, we can grow it to 300,000, then another 300,000, and hopefully 1 million after another year,” he added.

Pilot run to start in July

The DSWD said the pilot implementation will start next month, Dano Tingcungco reported on “24 Oras.”

Meanwhile, Gatchalian also shared some conditions for the beneficiaries under the program including attending nutrition classes and having one employed family member who can later take skills upgrade training under the  Department of Labor and Employment, or Technical Education and Skills Development Authority.

“Part of the conditionalities ng food stamps is to attend nutrition classes… FNRI or the Food and Nutrition Research Institute has come out with a cookbook where a meal for a family of five could cost just P50 pesos per meal that is nutritious and delicious," he said.—LDF, GMA Integrated News