The Province of Iloilo, in partnership with the Zero Hunger Alliance, organized the Zero Hunger Summit on August 6, 2024, at the Grand Social Hall, Casa Real de Iloilo to tackle food security and promote sustainable agricultural practices.
The event brought together local government officials, non-government organizations, community leaders, and representatives from the private sector to forge actionable solutions to achieve zero hunger.
It also featured keynote addresses and panel discussions focused on local and national initiatives in response to malnutrition. In attendance are Provincial Administrator Raul Banias, National Nutrition Council VI Regional Program Coordinator Reginaldo Guillen, various city/municipal mayors, city/municipal nutrition action officers, and city/municipal agriculture officers, among others.
Provincial Health Officer Dr. Maria Socorro Quiñon gave an overview of the hunger and malnutrition situation and initiatives in the province of Iloilo. One of the strategies being implemented by the provincial government is the ART RESPONSE program. ART stands for adequate food production; rehabilitation of malnutrition; and training and capacity building of nutrition workers.
RESPONSE means reactivated nutrition committee; education to promote good nutrition and behaviour change; social marketing for nutrition support; people empowerment; outstanding performance in nutrition program implementation through awarding; networking and linkages with government agencies and non-government organizations; scaling up nutrition; and emergency response or nutrition in emergencies.
Provincial Agriculturist Dr. Ildefonso Toledo also gave an overview of the sustainable agricultural programs of the province such as the MoRProGRes Gardening which aims to create agri-tourism destinations by blending ornamental gardening, landscaping and high-value crop production.
Other programs include the distribution of vegetable seeds to nutritionally-at-risk families, the conduct of livelihood and skills training on rice and vegetable production technology, the distribution of agricultural inputs to farmers, and the urban agriculture or container gardening project. Urban gardening aims to showcase sustainable and safe food production using recyclables and native materials in a limited space.
Kamille Corpuz, head of RsPo Foundation and Century Pacific Food Inc. shared their initiatives in responding to the crisis of hunger and malnutrition in a national context.
Zero Hunger Alliance National Coordinator Mark Lawrence Cruz also presented the 5M Approach to Zero Hunger namely Magtulungan (partnership for zero hunger); Magpakain (supplemental feeding); Magpakalusog (health and nutrition education); Magtanim (community food farming); and Magconnect (online platforms for zero hunger).
Cruz lauded the province of Iloilo for recording the largest Zero Hunger Summit response and for its commitment towards ending malnutrition. He also appealed to the local leaders and stakeholders to collaborate to free Filipino children from hunger.
“This is the impossibility that we want to achieve – zero hunger. Let us do it together all at the same time. And this is the proper time. Between the Zero Hunger Alliance and the province of Iloilo, we want to strike a partnership. Let us have a follow-up on this. Let us meet every year so we can measure our progress and we could declare zero hunger in the province of Iloilo,” he said.
“This strong response is an exciting moment for us because we have never seen such a united front against hunger led by the province and attended by the LGUs. Kami, we will do our part and we will be here in your fight against hunger. Ngayon pa lang nagpapasalamat na po ako at congratulations sa probinsya ng Iloilo. Thank you for leading the way and we are with you all the way. Walang iwanan. Together, we can end hunger,” he added.
Other partners also presented their local response to zero hunger through the 5M Model.
The highlight of the summit is the action planning session among the local officials and other stakeholders.
Meanwhile, Gov. Arthur Defensor, Jr. stressed that malnutrition is a food security issue and that the provincial government is zeroing in on its programs towards addressing the problem of nutrition.
“When we talk about our nutrition program, before you ask the question of what kind of food you eat, unahin muna natin, do you have enough food? Nutrition is a food security issue. That is one of the basic premises of our nutrition program,” he said.
The governor said that to address the problem, the provincial government is achieving the equitable distribution of resources and building capacities through good governance.
“Our job is not to feed people. Our job is to provide the fundamentals in government so that you can build capacities – capacity building through good governance,” Defensor said.
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