Albay solon urges Marcos to create food security cluster to ease hunger in PH

FILE PHOTO: Albay 2nd District Rep. Joey Salceda

LIGAO CITY — To further ease and solve the worsening hunger problems in the country, Albay 2nd District Rep. Joey Salceda on Friday called on President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to form a food security cluster.

Salceda made the remark after the latest Social Weather Stations (SWS) survey showed a stagnant hunger rate.

According to the SWS, there were still 11.3 percent, or 2.9 million families, starving in the country in October, compared with 11.6 percent in June.

“The purpose [of the food security cluster] is to ensure that inter-agency cooperation is undertaken at the highest levels of government,” Salceda said in a statement.

READ: Hunger rate ‘hardly’ moved in months under Bongbong Marcos admin — SWS

He added: “We do not have a food security cluster yet, although it would be very useful to have one since food and nutrition issues are beyond just agriculture. They encompass trade, industry, demographic, transport, energy, and even climate change and scientific development issues.”

Salceda, who chairs the House ways and means committee, also recommended that Marcos appoint a senior undersecretary or deputy in the Department of Agriculture (DA), of which the President is also the concurrent head.

“Dapat magkaroon ng mas holistic, whole-of-government approach sa issue ang gabinete, lalo’t malinaw na may mahalagang papel ang iba pang ahensya sa food security,” the lawmaker said

Aside from the DA, the Bureau of Customs, and the Departments of Transportation, Science and Technology, and National Defense should be part of the food security cluster, Salceda added.

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