A total of 19,317 youth leaders and Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) members have supported their localities in the campaign on urban gardening and community-based agriculture through the “HAPAG sa Barangay project, the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) said.

In a statement, the DILG explained that the program is a priority investment area of the SK councils under the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) - DILG - National Youth Commission (NYC) Joint Memorandum Circular No. 1, series of 2019, which allows the SK fund to be used for programs that contribute to nation-building through environmental protection, livelihood, capacity-building, health initiatives and youth advocacy.

In 2024, the DILG recalled that the SK chairmen and youth volunteers played key roles in the establishment, operation, and maintenance of around 24,000 community gardens nationwide.

“HAPAG sa Barangay empowers youth to lead grassroots action in food production. SK councils and youth organizations coordinate seed distributions, conduct workshops on urban agriculture, and organize information drives on nutrition and sustainability, the DILG said.

Further, the DILG noted that many SKs also help maintain communal gardens and mobilize young people to take part in household planting initiatives.

“DILG Memorandum Circular No. 2023-001 mandates barangays to identify and utilize available public spaces, preferably vacant lots owned by the barangay or LGU, for food gardening,’’ it added.

The initiative aims to mitigate food insecurity while promoting environmental stewardship and self-reliance, especially among the youth.

At present, the DILG pointed out that over 7.2 million square meters of land nationwide have been dedicated for community gardens. 

“These areas are planted with a wide variety of produce, including leafy greens like broccoli, pechay, and mustasa (mustard greens); crops such as kamote (sweet potato), sayote (vegetable pear) and labanos (raddish); fruit vegetables like ampalaya (bitter gourd), eggplant and kamatis (tomato) and even long-term fruit trees like mango, lanzones (duku fruit) and rambutan (nephelium lappaceum), the DILG noted.

The top three regions with the most land allocated for community gardens include Central Luzon (1.068 million square meters), Eastern Visayas (811,259.19 square meters), and the Bicol Region (747,882.73 square meters).

The DILG asserted that young leaders are proving themselves not only as voices of their generation, but as hands-on partners in building food-resilient and sustainable communities.