DA, DILG urged to deploy more Kadiwa rolling stores amid rising food prices

Quezon City Representative Alfred Vargas is calling on the Department of Agriculture (DA) and the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) to deploy more Kadiwa rolling stores to help Filipinos cope with the increasing prices of food.

Vargas' proposal is contained in House Resolution 1495, in which he urged the DA and the DILG to deploy more rolling stores though its Kadiwa Ni Ani at Kita Program.

LOOK: Quezon City Rep. Alfred Vargas urges DA, DILG to deploy more Kadiwa rolling stores amid spike in food prices @gmanews pic.twitter.com/FS1xJQPJsv

— Erwin Colcol (@erwincolcol) January 28, 2021

“Kailangang ma-deploy ang mga dagdag na rolling store sa lalong madaling panahon. Sa ngayon walang katiyakan kailan magiging stable ang presyo ng mga bilihin at sa bawat araw na lumilipas ay dumarami ang nagugutom na mga kababayan natin,” Vargas said.

Launched in 2019, the Kadiwa is a market system that sells major agricultural goods sourced directly from farmers and fisherfolk at low prices to help poor Filipino households.

The program is being implemented through the collaboration of the DA, the DILG, and the Food Terminal Inc., and is available in three variants: Kadiwa on Wheels, Kadiwa Retail, and Kadiwa Online.

Vargas, in the resolution, called on the government to ensure full support for the program, acknowledging "importance and success of the Kadiwa Program to maintain and stabilize prices, make accessible many affordable basic commodities, and support farmers and fisherfolk.”

He also said he would ask the Department of Social Welfare and Development to consider extending additional cash aid as the number of "food-poor" and "borderline food-poor" families increased due to the pandemic.

Food prices in Metro Manila markets are on the rise because food supply had dropped due to the series of lockdowns and successive typhoons, among other factors.

Prices of pork in Metro Manila markets, for instance, have gone up due to the African swine fever.

Marikina City Representative Stella Quimbo has earlier called for a House investigation to look into the cause of the rising pork prices in the country and evaluate the measures currently being taken to address this.—AOL, GMA News