CEBU CITY, Philippines – The Department of Social Welfare and Development in Central Visayas (DSWD-7) distributed a total of 6,666 sacks of Japan-donated rice to identified local government units (LGUs) in the provinces of Cebu and Bohol which were affected by the Typhoon Odette.
In a press statement on Wednesday, June 1, 2022, the DSWD-7 said the donated rice, weighing 30 kilos per sack, was provided by the Japanese government through their Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, and Fisheries (MAFF-Japan) as part of the ASEAN Plus Three Emergency Rice Reserve Tier 3 Program (APTERR).
The distribution of the rice took place during the entire month of May through the Disaster Response Management Division, in partnership with the National Food Authority in Central Visayas (NFA-7).
“The number of sacks was between the provinces and then were directly delivered to identified local government units for release to Typhoon Odette-affected families,” the DSWD-7 said.
Among the areas identified for Bohol are: Alicia (200 sacks), Balilihan (200 sacks), Calape (547 sacks), Carmen (125 sacks), Loon (543 sacks), Mabini (584 sacks), Valencia (334 sacks), Tagbilaran City (500 sacks), and Tubigon (300 sacks).
Moreover, the LGUs of Alcantara, Alcoy, Alegria, Boljoon, and Ginatilan received 417 sacks of rice each, while Malabuyoc, Moalboal, and Ronda each received 416 sacks of the donated Japanese rice.
The DSWD-7 said that according to the Memorandum of Agreement between NFA and DSWD on rice distribution, DSWD Field Office 7 is in charge of transferring stocks from the NFA warehouse to the receiving LGU and assisting in the distribution and release of donated rice to the beneficiaries.
“At the Turnover Ceremony in Balilihan, the Minister of Economic Affairs of the Embassy of Japan in the Philippines, Mr. Masahiro Nakata, DSWD-Disaster Response Management Bureau Undersecretary Felicisimo Budiongan, and NFA Administrator Judy Carol Dansal shared their hope to build stronger ties between Japan and the Philippines,” reads a portion of the statement.
Typhoon Odette, international name “Rai”, hit Cebu and other areas in Visayas and Mindanao last December 2021 affecting not less than 630,000 families or close to 2 million individuals in Cebu.
/bmjo
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