Residents in Barangay San Isidro, San Luis, Pampanga have converted a 7,000-square-meter land into a community garden and rehabilitated a nearby riverbank with the help of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) to boost their food security and their disaster resilience.
DSWD Secretary Rex Gatchalian inspected the site on Wednesday and saw firsthand how the community is benefitting from the agency’s Project LAWA (Local Adaptation to Water Access) at BINHI (Breaking Insufficiency through Nutritious Harvest for the Impoverished).
“Ito ‘yung proyekto natin — yung LAWA at BINHI. Alinsunod ito sa utos ng ating Pangulong Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr., bilang lagi niyang sinasabi na kailangan may sapat na pagkain sa hapag ng bawat pamilyang Pilipino (This is our LAWA and BINHI project. This is in line with the directive of our President to provide sufficient food for every Filipino family),” Gatchalian said in an interview with members of the media.
Launched in 2023, the DSWD initiative was designed to ensure that agricultural productivity continues during droughts or dry periods and even on days with extreme heavy rainfall.
Under the BINHI component of the program, the community garden in Barangay San Isidro was cultivated by 150 partner-beneficiaries composed of local farmers, senior citizens, and solo parents under the program’s cash-for-training and work (CFT/W).
Each beneficiary received PHP10,000 for 20 days of rendered labor and attendance in training sessions.
“May cash for work na sila, meron pa silang farm kung saan sila pwedeng kumuha ng kinakain nila. Itong mga community garden or rural farm, importante ito kasi sa ganitong paraan, sa mga darating na sakuna at kalamidad, meron at meron silang palaging makakain (Besides having cash for work, they now also have a farm where they get their food. These community gardens or rural farms are important because they will have food when disaster or calamity strikes),” Gatchalian said.
He said some of the surplus harvests are also sold in Metro Manila and in local markets, resulting in the further boosting of the beneficiaries’ livelihood ventures.
The community garden is also now well-capacitated to serve as a supplier for supplementary feeding programs led by the DSWD’s Field Office 3-Central Luzon.
Gatchalian, who was able to engage with the beneficiaries over a hearty breakfast cooked from the abundant harvest of their garden, was elated to share how locals used their hard-earned money from the project.
He said some beneficiaries used their salary from the cash for work to start a livelihood like selling frozen meat and school supplies.
The beneficiaries also jointly worked in rehabilitating a nearby riverbank.
The stretch of the river in San Luis town often serves as a catch basin, leading to clogs caused by debris brought from other larger water bodies.
Through the Project LAWA, the river has been rehabilitated and revitalized and is now kept clean and presently home to an abundant harvest of kangkong.
Beyond the 20 days of paid work, the community garden and riverbank continue to thrive under the close care of beneficiaries, who now have full control over the resources that will sprout from the growing farm and irrigation sites.
As part of a whole-of-government approach, the DSWD has tapped the assistance of the Department of Agriculture (DA) which provided the seedlings for the community garden and the fingerlings for the river.
The Project LAWA at BINHI has been also instrumental in raising awareness on climate change and ways to mitigate its adverse impact among communities, particularly through its training focused on disaster risk reduction, climate change adaptation, and practical skills in gardening, and water harvesting.
Gatchalian was joined by Pampanga Vice Governor Dennis Pineda, Pampanga 4th District Rep. Anna York Cristina Bondoc-Sagum, 4th District Board Member Kaye Naguit, and San Luis Mayor Jayson Sagum. (PNA)
