Some 107 community-based organizations or CBOs in Central Luzon received P35 million in contracts from the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD).
The assistance, which was awarded last year, is under the agency's Enhanced Partnership Against Hunger and Poverty (EPAHP) program, aimed to connect local producers to institutional markets.
It is expected to provide steady supply of fresh food for government-supported programs such as supplemental feeding, residential care facilities, and other social welfare initiatives.
Piloted in 2016 and institutionalized in 2019 through a national memorandum of understanding spearheaded by DSWD, EPAHP continues to strengthen food and nutrition security, improve livelihoods, and empower communities in the fight against hunger.
The DSWD said that EPAHP is a sustainable anti-hunger initiative which focuses on livelihood and employment opportunities.
“This is not a dole out mentality. EPAHP empowers cooperatives and farmers’ organizations by linking them directly to institutional markets such as DSWD centers, LGUs [local government units], and the BJMP [Bureau of Jail Management and Penology],” the agency said.
“We link farmers, fisherfolk, and small vendors to the market. Even the government has demand for fresh produce, and our CBOs are now supplying supplemental feeding programs and residential care facilities,” it added.