BAGUIO CITY, April 22 (PIA) — Almost 200 schools in the Cordillera region are set to receive farm and garden tools and equipment in support to the “Gulayan sa Paaralan” program amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Department of Agriculture – Cordillera led by Regional Technical Director for Operations Danilo Daguio turned over the more than P 1 million- worth of agricultural inputs to the Department of Education – Cordillera(DepEd-CAR) led by Assistant Regional Director Florante Vergara during a simple ceremony recently. The two agency heads also signed a memorandum of understanding for the strengthening of their partnership relative to the implementation of the Gulayan sa Paaralan in public schools in the region.
The agricultural inputs amounting to Php 1,038,860 under the DA-CAR’s High-Value Crops Development Program aim to boost the Gulayan sa Paaralan program which could also be a source of food as a means for survival during the time of the health crisis.
The Gulayan sa Paaralan particularly targets to raise awareness on health and nutrition by planting vegetables in available spaces in schools. It also pursues to augment the supplemental feeding program of schools while promoting vegetable consumption.
The Gulayan sa Paaralan is among the strategies of the DA under its Plant Plant Plant Program culturing food sufficiency and security towards sustainable communities. This convergence between DA and DepEd will harmonize efforts on food sufficiency and curbing nutritional deficiency towards a brighter future for children.
Vergara, an agriculturist and TVL teacher himself, thanked DA-CAR and assured that inputs provided will be utilized to help decrease the rate of malnutrition among school children in the Cordillera region.
“We appreciate this gesture of generosity from DA that was given not to glamorize but to support and strengthen us in our fight against malnutrition. This ‘Gulayan sa Paaralan’ allows us to inculcate among learners the values of doing sustainable agriculture, good health, nutrition, and hard work,” he said.
He assured that DepEd will continuously promote the benefits of agriculture to Cordilleran learners and even teachers . **JDP/RMC- PIA CAR
