Submitted by admin-r4b on
Palawan - In the midst of Palawan's unspoiled paradise, there were also families battling and enduring hunger and poverty long before the Corona virus pandemic hit the province.
To support poverty reduction, hunger mitigation, and food security in urban and rural communities, National Irrigation Administration (NIA) - Palawan Irrigation Management Office (PIMO), through the Irrigators Associations, conducted the Gulayamanan project in 2021 as a launch event of Enhanced Partnership Against Hunger and Poverty (EPAHP).
EPAHP is the flagship program of E.O. 101 or Creating an Inter-agency Task Force on ZERO Hunger in 2020, following the successful implementation of the Partnership Against Hunger and Poverty (PAHP) in 2016. The goal of EPAHP is to mitigate hunger, ensure food security and establish sustainable agriculture by 2030 with the help of the government’s supply and support services sectors.
As a gesture of support to E.O 101, 11 of the 21 Irrigators Associations (IAs) of the Malatago River Irrigation System (MRIS) have begun participating in the Gulayamanan project by planting vegetables, herbs, and malunggay trees near the dam site in Narra town. SWRF Technician Arielyn Guanzon explained that NIS IAs, including Batang-Batang RIS, are expected to participate in this year's EPAHP activity.
Back in November 2020, Palawan IMO held its first convergence meeting with its partner agencies to orient about the EPAHP program, which links into the direction of the Provincial Memorandum of Understanding (MOU).
Sr. Institutional Development Officer, Ms. Glenda G. Buenavista on behalf of Division Manager Conrado V. Cardenas Jr. indicates that PIMO will have its MOU in the first quarter of 2022. Moreover, the agency will be working on the beneficial marketing agreements with partner agencies for food supply that allows IAs to coordinate directly with private and other agencies without the middleman.
In addition, the NIA Palawan outlines that Gulayamanan activity can also gain nutritional security and dietary nutrition for health. The agency ensures the maintenance and monitoring of the vegetables grown and hopes to encourage all IAs and families to patronize this activity in order to preserve the natural methods of feeding and healing people. By: Daryle C. Camara, Palawan IMO