The National Food Coalition (NFC) recently urged President Rodrigo Duterte to certify the Zero Hunger Bill as priority as a step in reducing poverty and promoting inclusive growth, a promise he made during his State of Nation Address last July.
Filed by Senate President Aquilino Pimentel III in June, the Bill requires the government to set clear policy targets to eliminate hunger in the Philippines within 10 years.
A similar bill was filed soon after in the House of Representatives by Rep. Karlo Alexei Nograles and his brother Rep. Jericho Jonas Nograles.
The bill seeks to make food not just a charity issue but a legal entitlement by adopting a comprehensive rights-based legal framework for food programs using a whole-of-government approach.
‘Unemployment and underemployment are degrading the capacity of many Filipinos to meet their own needs in dignity and enjoy their human rights, including their right to adequate food and nutrition,” NFC said.
On the other hand, Foodfirst Information & Action Network (FIAN) president Aurea G. Miclat-Teves presented several priority agenda for the president to consider.
She said the president should approve a law upholding the right to food and nutrition, a specific measure to compel the government to provide adequate food for all Filipinos at all times.
She added that a new law on land reform should be enacted to properly implement the law on indigenous peoples’ rights. Another law should be implemented to modernize agriculture and fisheries, as well as to reduce the country’s disaster risk.
Photo credit: astrudontour.blogspot.com