FOOD security is the goal of every leader of the nation, since food is the most basic among the fundamental human needs. Previous presidents before Bongbong Marcos had tried to ensure food security for the nation. Whatever accomplishments they made in this regard must have been lacking, because now the leadership still needs to provide enough food for the booming population.
This felt need is behind the President’s push for a whole-of-government approach to gain food security and proper nutrition in a bid to promote zero hunger and nutrition security in the Philippines under the administration’s Philippine Development Plan 2023-2028. In a two-page Memorandum Circular No. 47 signed by Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin on April 19, President Marcos directed all government agencies and urged all local government units (LGUs) to support the implementation of the Enhanced Partnership Against Hunger and Poverty (EPAHP) program.
The EPAHP is one of the banner programs of the Task Force on Zero Hunger, which aims to institutionalize efforts to mitigate hunger and promote food and nutrition security by linking community-based organizations to prospective markets and providing credit assistance to support food production, processing and distribution.
‘It’s about time the government agencies tasked to help the nation attain food security, fight hunger and poverty… deliver some results.’
Fighting hunger and ensuring that millions of Filipinos have food on their tables, even if the food is not enough, is as much an emergency concern as fighting poverty is. Hunger, malnutrition and poverty may be remedied by the creation of more jobs and other livelihood sources in the economy. The citizens, however poor, do not want to be tied forever to dole-outs and “ayuda” since if practiced for a long time, financial assistance from government promotes laziness and dehumanizes recipients.
Early in his term, at a Cabinet meeting in September 2022, PBBM directed several departments to craft a three-year Food Logistics Action Agenda aimed at revolutionizing the country’s food distribution system. The order was specifically for the agriculture, trade, transportation, public works, information and communications, and interior departments to develop a food logistics chain, cold chain industry, ports infrastructure, and farm-to-market roads.
The Presidential Communications Office said the action plan’s general objective is to ensure the availability, accessibility, and affordability of food for Filipinos and that consumers reliably get the right product at the right time. Nearly two years after the issuance of this directive, we wonder what these departments have done by way of compliance.
Now, Malacañang had to do some reiteration, saying all government agencies and instrumentalities should support the continuous and effective implementation of the EPAHP program to bolster government efforts towards attaining zero hunger, food and nutrition security, and sustainable agriculture.
The Task Force Zero Hunger, established through Executive Order No. 10 s. 2020, as amended by EO 27 s. 2023, is directed to ensure the continued and effective implementation of the EPAHP Program, as it is mandated to carry out measures in coordination with the relevant government agencies.
The measures include efforts to strengthen institutional feeding programs of partner agencies; extend credit assistance to support food production, processing and distribution in partnership with government financial intuitions; and link participating CBOs to prospective markets.
The task force is also mandated to enhance provision of farm production technologies and extension of services to government-assisted family farms and rural based-organizations, as well as enhancing the sustainability of the EPAHP program through implementation of policies that will engage the private sector, and institutionalize mechanisms in LGUs.
It is also directed to adopt a community participation procurement program to encourage community-based groups to participate in the EPAHP program, and construct, repair and improve irrigation facilities and appurtenant structures in irrigable areas in the countryside.
It’s about time the government agencies tasked to help the nation attain food security, fight hunger and poverty through the specific programs listed by the President deliver some results.
