San Juan City Mayor Francis Zamora signed a memorandum of agreement (MOA) on Friday (July 24) with Department of Agriculture (DA) Secretary William Dar for the promotion and establishment of urban agriculture in the city.
“This is a very welcome partnership which would address one of the primary concerns during the pandemic -- food security. With the help of the DA and DA Secretary William Dar, we hope to impart the knowledge and skills to the most vulnerable San Juaneños,” Mayor Zamora said in a statement.
The DA, through the Bureau of Plant Industry, will provide San Juan City with starter kits that include agricultural inputs and technical assistance to its residents in the protection of the environment through eco-friendly methods to address the stability of food supply, help alleviate poverty and hunger, and foster social integration in the community.
“We are facing one of the most dreadful things we have ever encountered, which is the pandemic, and one of the things we are targeting to help out the Filipinos is Food Always In The Home or FAITH,” Secretary Dar said.
After the MOA signing, Sec. Dar turned over to San Juan City 10,190 packets of various seeds such as tomato, eggplant, mustard, pechay, and patola, two trays of seedlings, and a sack of compost.
The department and the San Juan City LGU will schedule capacity training for the residents in the coming weeks and provide them with starter kits so they can develop gardens in their residences.
“On behalf of the City of San Juan, I would like to thank Secretary Dar and the DA for this very worthwhile initiative. This will go a long way in helping our constituents, not just in food security, but also in making their lives easier as we join hands in fighting this pandemic,” the mayor said.