Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles led the Department of Agrarian Reform, Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) and a health care cooperative in Davao del Sur in signing an agreement for the joint implementation of the government’s Enhanced Partnership Against Hunger and Poverty (EPAHP) program to address issues of poverty and hunger in the area.
Through the virtual MOU and marketing agreement signing last July 2, 2021, the BJMP and Medical Mission Group Hospitals and Health Services Cooperative of the Philippines (MMGHHSCP) Federation in the Davao region would directly choose their needed food supply for persons deprived of liberty (PDLs) and patients confined in hospitals from agrarian reform beneficiary organizations (ARBOs).
“We strengthen our coops in the countryside and help them price their produce competitively. This is all part of the Duterte administration’s efforts to bolster agriculture and farm production. We will sustain this effort until the end of the President’s term.”
According to Nograles, because of the agreement, ARBOs in Region 11 would have a steady market to sell their produce while assuring a regular supply of cheaper, fresh and nutritious food to PDLs and hospital patients.
The Malacañang official explained that the pandemic has affected various sectors, but agriculture has remained strong and resilient because farmers did not stop producing essential food items for the entire country.
The Cabinet Secretary noted: “Kailangan natin magtulungan; we can further strengthen the sector by giving it more support and empowering our farmers, thus helping the economy’s recovery.”
EPAHP, the banner program of Task Force Zero Hunger which Nograles heads, aims to eradicate hunger, maintain food security, address poverty and malnutrition, and address the various concerns of millions of agri sector members.
Joining Nograles in the online MOU signing was Agrarian Reform Secretary John Castriciones, Usec. Emily Padilla, Usec. Virginia Orogo, DAR Davao del Sur Regional Director Joseph Orilla, BJMP Jail Director General Allan Sullano Iral, Bureau of Agrarian Reform Beneficiaries Director Baltazar Cruz, LBP Davao Del Sur Lending Center Manager Arnel Caalim, Medical Mission Group Federation CEO Dr. Jose Tiongco, reps from different partner agencies and ARBO members.
“Kailangan natin magtulungan; we can further strengthen the sector by giving it more support and empowering our farmers, thus helping the economy’s recovery.”
The agri coops which joined the signing include the following: Dalawinon Farmers Multi-Purpose Cooperative, Pasig Agrarian Reform Beneficiaries Upland Farmers (PARBUF) MPC, Savoy United Tribal Farmers Association (SUFTA) and the Municipal and Barangay Food Terminal Federation. They would provide products to institutional markets including the BJMP Male Digos Dormitory, Digos Medical Center Consumers Cooperative, and the Cooperative of Agrarian Reform Employees.
The former Davao legislator explained that these kinds of partnerships greatly assist community-based organizations in gaining market access and institutional support they would not otherwise have without close coordination with the government.
“We strengthen our coops in the countryside and help them price their produce competitively. This is all part of the Duterte administration’s efforts to bolster agriculture and farm production. We will sustain this effort until the end of the President’s term,” the Cabinet official stressed.