SAN JOSE, Antique – The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Regional Field Unit in Western Visayas is set to start the distribution of food packs for families affected by the enhanced community quarantine in the province due to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).
Luna Moscoso, chief for Disaster Response Management Division of DSWD 6, said they have already prepositioned 2,600 family food packs in four towns of the province.
“We have prepositioned 500 food packs in the town of Barbaza; 1,100 food packs in Tobias Fornier; 500 food packs in Patnongon; and another 500 in Bugasong,” she said.
Moscoso added each food pack is worth P360 containing four corned beef, four sardines, six coffee sachets and six kilos of rice.
“The food pack will last for two days for a family with five members,” she said.
The DSWD is also requesting local government units in the province to submit their list of affected family members so that the department would know how many are still in need of assistance.
“The DSWD will be augmenting the needed food packs of the LGUs due to the Enhanced Community Quarantine,” she said.
She added the DSWD will just augment the LGUs which will be the first to respond in providing the needed food supplies of their constituents under their respective calamity fund.
The priority of the DSWD augmentation will be the poor families listed on the National Household Targeting System and second, would be the non-poor but affected families by Covid-19, Moscoso said.
She said that DSWD Regional Office 6 has also requested an additional P3 billion from the DSWD Central office for the food packs in whole Western Visayas in case the prepositioned items would not be enough.
“The DSWD Regional Office 6 might not be able to sustain the needed huge amount that we have requested for additional funds from our central office,” she said. (With a report from PNA/PN)
