ADB extends $400-M loan to support PH food stamp program
In a statement on Wednesday, the ADB announced it has approved a $400-million loan for the Philippines' Reducing Food Insecurity and Undernutrition with Electronic Vouchers Project, which will expand the Walang Gutom (Zero Hunger) Food Stamp Program under the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD).
The Japan-led multilateral lender said the loan will help finance the delivery of monthly electronic food vouchers to 750,000 food-insecure households nationwide.
"With nearly half the Philippine population unable to afford a healthy and nutritious diet, food vouchers are essential to help poor and vulnerable households meet their nutritional needs," said ADB Deputy Director General for Southeast Asia and concurrent Country Director for the Philippines Pavit Ramachandran.
"This project reflects ADB's commitment to improving food security and nutrition so that all Filipinos can thrive," Ramachandran said.
In December last year, the DSWD launched the Walang Gutom 2027 Food Stamp Program. It currently has 300,000 beneficiaries.
Under the program, the agency provides monetary-based assistance in the form of an Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) card that will be loaded with monthly food credits amounting to P3,000 to purchase a select list of food commodities from partner merchant store.
The ADB said poverty and food insecurity contribute to undernutrition, with nearly 30% of Filipino children under the age of five are stunted. This reflects long-term nutritional deficiencies, the ADB said, that impair learning, health, and future productivity.
The lender said childhood undernutrition is also estimated to cost the economy $8.5 billion annually, underscoring the urgent need for targeted multisector solutions.
The ADB said the Agence Française de Développement (AFD) is co-financing the food stamp initiative with a loan of 200 million euros ($220 million) and the OPEC Fund for International Development with a loan of $150 million.
The lender added that it provided technical assistance to the DSWD to pilot the delivery of electronic vouchers in five locations from December 2023 to July 2024 in partnership with the World Food Programme. — VDV, GMA Integrated News
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