P20/kilo rice for transport workers starts Tuesday

MANILA, Philippines — More than 57,000 public transport workers will benefit from the P20-per-kilo rice program as the Department of Agriculture (DA) begins distribution in five major cities tomorrow.

The initiative will allow qualified jeepney, bus and tricycle drivers as well as transport operators to buy up to 10 kilos of rice per month at the subsidized price of P20 per kilo.

Initial rollouts will take place in Quezon City with 17,633 beneficiaries, Navotas (1,001), Angeles City in Pampanga (9,961), Cebu City (24,742) and Tagum City (3,650), the DA said.

Designated distribution centers include the Bureau of Animal Industry, Philippine Fisheries Development Authority, Food Terminal Inc. and offices of the Agribusiness and Marketing Assistance Division.

Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. described the program as a direct intervention aimed at easing the burden of rising food costs.

“This is more than a food program. It’s a promise being fulfilled – a fight against hunger that meets people where they are,” Tiu Laurel said.

The Department of Transportation, Department of the Interior and Local Government as well as the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board helped identify the beneficiaries.

Tiu Laurel said the program supports the administration’s target of covering 15 million households by 2026 and sustaining the rice subsidy until the end of President Marcos’ term.

Originally intended for senior citizens, solo parents, persons with disabilities and low-income families, the P20 per-kilo rice program has expanded to cover minimum wage earners, farmers, fisherfolk, public school teachers, non-teaching education staff and beneficiaries of the Department of Social Welfare and Development’s Walang Gutom initiative.