DSWD starts pilot run of food stamp program
Published Jul 18, 2023 11:04 am
The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) began the pilot implementation of the food stamp program, with the distribution of electronic benefit transfer cards loaded with “food credits” on Tuesday, July 18.
The program will have its pilot run in Metro Manila, Cagayan Valley, Bicol Region, Caraga, and Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, and initially benefit 3,000 low-income families identified through Listahanan 3—a standardized poor household targeting system.
“In the ‘Walang Gutom’ (No More Hunger) program, we will not only make sure that no Filipino sleeps with an empty stomach, we will also make sure that what they eat is nutritious so that they have enough strength to become part of our labor economy,” DSWD Secretary Rex Gatchalian said during the “Walang Gutom 2027: Food Stamp Program” launch held in Tondo, Manila.
The event was graced by President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.
Gatchalian said the food stamp program aims to reduce involuntary hunger in low-income households by providing monetary assistance through electronic benefit transfer cards with food credits, targeting the bottom 1 million households in Listahanan 3.
“The priority beneficiaries for the pilot implementation are poorest households prone to food insecurity, as well as pregnant and lactating women, and households with children two years of age and below,” he said.
The food credits can be used to purchase nutrition-rich food items from DSWD-accredited partner retailers.
Fifty percent of food credits will be allocated to carbohydrate-rich foods like rice and bread (P1,500), 30 percent for proteins like chicken or pork (P900), and 20 percent for vegetables, fruits, oil, salt, and condiments (P600).
The program, implemented with the World Food Program and Asian Development Bank, also aims to address hunger and empower beneficiaries through capacity building and training to improve their employable skills.
Also present during the launch at the Don Bosco Youth Center in Tondo were Vice President Sara Duterte, Labor and Employment Secretary Bienvenido Laguesma, and representatives from the Department of Agriculture, Technical Education and Skills Development Authority, Philippine Statistics Authority, Department of Science and Technology-Food and Nutrition Research Institute, Department of Health, and Department of Trade and Industry.
"Our collaboration and cooperation with different government agencies is very important. As ordered by our beloved President, we need to be united and work together to immediately lift our beneficiaries away from poverty,” Gatchalian said.