P40 billion needed yearly for food stamp project

MANILA, Philippines — Discussions are still ongoing on how to bankroll the implementation of the government’s food stamp program, which would require funding of around P40 billion, an official of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) said yesterday.

“We still have a discussion with the economic team on how to source. This is a real challenge because of the limited resources that we have,” DSWD Undersecretary for innovation Eduardo Punay said during the Saturday News Forum at the Dapo Restaurant and Bar.

In a separate text message, Punay said the Walang Gutom Food Stamp 2027 project needs a funding of P40 billion, covering one million families belonging to the poorest of the poor.

Punay, who is chairman of the technical working group of the project, said 300,000 families would be covered during the initial phase for P12 billion.

The second phase would cover 300,000 families, then 400,000 families for the third year, Punay added.

Citing a study from the Philippine Statistics Authority, Punay said these are families whose monthly income is less than P8,000. 

These are households who could only have one meal a day due to their limited budget.

The DSWD has secured a commitment from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) for a $3-million grant in technical assistance for the program’s pilot run which will start in the second half of the year.

To avoid dependency, Punay said they have set several conditions, including limiting the duration of the beneficiaries in the program to three to four years.

Beneficiaries will also have to enroll in training programs of the Department of Labor and Employment and the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority for them to secure jobs to sustain their livelihood and food requirements.

Given the government’s limited resources, each family will receive P3,000 in food credits every month which will be added to electronic benefit transfer cards.

Punay said the budget translates to about one meal a day every month.

He explained the government will not shoulder three meals a day for every family.

“We’re removing dependency, that’s why the government will shoulder one meal only for these families – one meal a day,” he said.

Punay said discussions are underway for the department to have a network of merchants, stores and retailers nationwide wherein the families can avail of nutritious food using their credits.

They also have initiated talks with the Department of Agriculture for the inclusion of Kadiwa stores as among the options where the beneficiaires can get food.