Residents of Castilla, Sorsogon will benefit from a project of the Department of Social Welfare and Development-Bicol (DSWD-5) by having a steady supply of vegetables for the consumption of their family and by earning extra income through selling their excess harvest.
In an interview on Thursday, Carl James Cabarles, DSWD disaster risk reduction management division information officer, said this will be made possible by 10 community-based gardens established under Project LAWA at BINHI, or the Local Adaptation to Water Access and Breaking Insufficiency through Nutritious Harvest program, which will benefit 462 individuals from 10 barangays in Castilla.
“The 10 project sites will now be under their management. From the ongoing production up to harvest, the partner beneficiaries, together with local government units in Castilla, will make sure that the project will be sustained and more improvements will be undertaken. They will have the option to sell their product or distribute it to the beneficiaries for consumption,” Cabarles said.
He said the community-based gardens were the output of the partner beneficiaries who took part in five days of cash-for-training and 15 days of cash-for-work with a payment of PHP395 per day.
“They are called partner-beneficiaries since they are our partner in developing activities that will ensure a food-secure community, and at the same time, they are the beneficiaries of the project. They were able to identify the solution to what is needed to address food insecurity in their areas,” he added.
Cabarles said that aside from the 10 project sites in Castilla town, another 19 project sites with the construction of dug wells and 58 project sites with communal gardening will be given to four towns in Sorsogon province, which will benefit over 1,487 partner beneficiaries.
“We will continue to monitor and conduct surprise visits to ensure the sustainability of the projects. We are positive that the projects will help the community and provide food and water to the families,” he said. (PNA)
