In a significant move to combat involuntary hunger, the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) has announced that the ‘Walang Gutom’ 2027: Philippine Food Stamp Program will assist 3,787 residents of Antique starting in 2025. The initiative, which translates to ‘Zero Hunger’, aims to provide electronic benefit transfer (EBT) cards to those suffering from food scarcity, enabling them to purchase nutritious food.
Lovella Mondana, a DSWD program information officer, explained that beneficiaries will receive PHP3,000 monthly in food credit, which can be used at accredited retailers. The program kicked off with 119 beneficiaries in Sebaste on January 16, followed by 170 in Pandan on January 18. Further distributions are scheduled for 279 beneficiaries in San Jose de Buenavista and 189 in Patnongon on the subsequent day.
Mondana highlighted that the food options available during the redemption activities will include rice, beef, poultry, and eggs, ensuring a variety of healthy choices for the beneficiaries. The selection of participants was based on the DSWD’s Listahanan 3, the National Household Targeting System, which identifies the most impoverished households.
The ‘Walang Gutom’ program is set to run for three years, after which the status of the beneficiaries will be reassessed to determine if their conditions have improved enough to exit the program. It is important to note that this program does not overlap with the beneficiaries of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program, ensuring a focused approach to addressing food insecurity among different groups.