Marcos Seeks ADB's Help To Revive Food Stamp Program

President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. is contemplating the revival of a food stamp program to address hunger through the help of the Asian Development Bank (ADB).

"One of the things that is in the pipeline, that is being developed, that is going to be of great assistance to our people, is a proposal by the DSWD (Department of Social Welfare and Development) for a food stamp program," Marcos said in an interview in this Inquirer report.

Marcos said this was one of the topics he discussed with ADB President Masatsugu Asakawa and other senior ADB officials as his administration shifts its priorities toward economic, climate and social welfare initiatives after the World Health Organization lifted the COVID-19 global health emergency status.

"With this development, we can now refocus our plans and priorities and train our sights with renewed vigor, carefully guided by the stinging lessons of the pandemic. We can now refocus our priorities on the development of our economy and the betterment of the lives of ordinary Filipinos," the Philippine Star reported.

"The pandemic did not blur our national vision that was already very clear to us even before its supervene. Our goal remains to be the same as in pre-pandemic circumstances. Our goal is to evolve our economy into one that is defined by sustainability, climate resilience, responsiveness and of course inclusivity," he added.

DSWD Secretary Rex Gatchalian earlier pitched the idea of giving digital food stamps to low-income families when he was sworn in as the agency's new secretary early this year. Gatchalian said the food coupon program is a response to the January Social Weather Stations (SWS) survey that revealed 3 million Filipino families are experiencing hunger.

Aside from this, Marcos said he is counting on the support of the ADB for the implementation of the Philippine Development Plan (PDP) 2023 to 2028, particularly on the issue of climate change.

"Our country recently topped the World Risk Index 2022 which means that we have been found to have the highest disaster risk among the 193 countries on the planet. A highly undesirable distinction that we somehow have come into," he said in this Manila Times report.

"Set against the backdrop of all these worries from realities and statistics, the whole point is the climate change agenda is compelling, not only for the Philippines but for the rest of the world. Our options are limited, we must mitigate, we must adapt, and if we don't do that we must suffer," Marcos added.