INQUIRER FILE PHOTO
MANILA, Philippines — Some 25,000 barangays in the country now have their own community gardens, the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) said on Sunday.
This is a huge improvement from just eight community gardens implemented in 2023.
According to the Presidential Communications Office (PCO), DILG Undersecretary Chito Valmocina noted that the initiative is part of the “Kalinisan Day” campaign where barangays are encouraged to build their own community gardens.
The gardens are planted with 18 vegetables inspired by the song “Bahay Kubo” using seedlings that were given to the residents by their barangay officers.
Valmocina explained that the project will help address issues in food security, poverty, and global warming.
“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,” he said.
(Because the continuation of this cleaning initiative involves planting vegetables. And planting is a very broad solution to problems – cleanliness, hunger, poverty, health, environment, climate change, and global warming.)
READ: DILG establishes Kalinisan project in search of cleanest barangay
The DILG undersecretary further said that the department had led 42,000 barangays, 1,700 cities, and 82 provinces in carrying out the community cleanup drive which included community gardens and fisheries.
He also lauded Quezon City for having 1,200 sites for urban farming.
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“All sectors are really encouraged here because the first to benefit from this are senior citizens and the youth. Because there are many malnourished individuals among us, and only a few eat vegetables,” Valmocina said in Filipino.
In a previous statement, the DILG said that the “Kalinisan” project is a “new convergence initiative to maintain and provide a healthy and safe environment” for Filipinos.