By Brian Jules Campued
A total of 25,000 barangays all over the country now have their own community gardens that would help address food security issues, the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) said on Sunday.
This is a significant improvement from just eight gardens implemented in 2023.
Barangay officers were also enjoined to give out seedlings to their constituents, as these seedlings, which is composed of 18 vegetables inspired by the popular folk song “Bahay Kubo”, would be planted on the said urban gardens
In a statement from the Presidential Communications Office (PCO), DILG Undersecretary Chito Valmocina noted that the project was part of the “Kalinisan Day” campaign, launched last Jan. 6 through Memorandum Circular 41.
The program instructed barangays nationwide to build their own community gardens — funded from their respective budgets instead from the national government — to help address food security issues due to global warming, according to the DILG.
“Kasi po ang kadugtong nitong paglilinis ay iyong pagtatanim ng mga gulay. [A]t iyong pagtatanim ay napakalawak po ang maso-solve na problema niyan – iyong kalinisan, kagutuman, kahirapan, kalusugan, kalikasan, climate change at saka global warming,” Valmocina said.
The DILG official further said that around 42,000 barangays in 82 provinces have participated in the community cleanup drive which included community gardens and fisheries.
He also lauded the Quezon City government for having 1,200 sites dedicated for vegetable farming urging other local government units to follow suit as planting crops is economical and inspires a healthier lifestyle.
“Lahat po ng sektor ay talagang ini-encourage dito kasi ang unang makikinabang dito ay senior citizen, mga kabataan. Kasi ang daming malnourished sa atin, bihira na iyong kumakain ng gulay,” Valmocina stated.
Meanwhile, Valmocina assured that the DILG is “aggressively working towards a cleaner and healthier community for all” emphasizing the need to sustain the cleanup drive program of the Marcos administration.
“Ito pong aming ginagawa ngayon ay talagang pinapakita namin sa Malacañang, sa ating Presidente na talaga seryoso ngayon at lahat ng agency ay talagang minu-monitor po,” he added. – avds
