Senior citizens above the age of 60, single mothers, and persons with disabilities can soon enjoy a 20 percent discount on basic goods and services with the support of the Department of Agriculture (DA), the Department of Trade and Industry, as well as the Department of Energy.

The three government agencies signed a joint administrative order on Thursday, Mar. 21 which stated that PWDs and seniors will soon be granted a doubled five percent of their special discount for their basic commodity purchases.

According to a statement, this would boost the weekly discount from P65 to P125, or P500 a month under the initiative of Congress House Speaker Martin Romualdez.

The maximum discount would also raise the total value of purchased goods from 1,300 to P2,500. To compare, the monthly quantity would increase from P5,200 to P10,000.

The basic and discounted commodities include rice, fish, pork, poultry, eggs, coffee, milk or other dairy products, condiments, and cooking gas. Meanwhile, veterinary goods and specific construction equipment and materials are under the prime discounted commodities.

Agriculture Secretary Francisco P. Tiu Laurel, Jr. said that boosting the discounts is part of President Ferdinand Marcos’ vision of securing food and better nutrition for Filipinos, especially those of old age and differently-abled.

“This special discount will be magnified once our strategy to produce more food by modernizing agriculture bears fruit,” he added.

Subsequently, the 20 percent special discount can be applied to purchasing farm inputs including fertilizers, feeds, herbicides, and the like.

“The order allows businesses who would grant the special discount to deduct these on their income tax payment,” the DA reported.

Approximately 15 million Filipinos will benefit from the discount, including the 12 percent of the PWD population, according to the recent 2020 census of the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).