At least 180,335 daycare children in Western Visayas will benefit from this year’s Supplementary Feeding program of the Department of Social Welfare and Development.
The Department targets to release P281,322,600 for the implementation of the program at the 5,557 daycare centers in the region for 120 days.
Beneficiaries of Supplementary Feeding in Ajuy, Iloilo
The biggest share of the budget will be spent in Negros Occidental which has the highest number of beneficiaries with 65,353 daycare children with a total allocation of P101,950,680; followed by Iloilo with 46,791 and an allocation of P72,993,960; Antique with 19,848 and allocation of P30,962,880; Capiz with 14,578 and allocation of P22,741,680 and Aklan with 12,749 and allocation of P19,888,440 and Guimaras with 4,226 beneficiaries and total allocation of P6,592,560.
Among the cities, Iloilo City has the most number of beneficiaries with 9, 819 and total allocation of P15,371,640; Bacolod City with 4,556 beneficiaries and allocation of P7,107,360; and Roxas City with 2,415 beneficiaries and total allocation of P3,767,400.
The Supplementary Feeding Program is the provision of food, in addition to the regular meals, to currently enrolled day care center children. This is in the form of hot meals, as recommended by Food and Nutrition Research Institute (FNRI), and served during break time to children in day care centers.
Beneficiaries of the program are three to five year-old children who are enrolled in day care centers.
Supplementary feeding is implemented in response to the 2006 Family Income and Expenditure Survey (FIES) conducted by the National Statistics Office which showed that 11 percent of Filipino families had income that cannot buy the food needed by family members for nutritional well-being and health. These families can be considered as hungry and food poor.
Its primary objective is to provide augmentation support through feeding program for children in day care centers. Likewise, it aims to improve knowledge, attitude and practices of children enrolled in day care centers, parents and caregivers through intensified nutrition and health education.
Last year, a total allocation of P277,797,000 was released for the implementation of the program in the entire region that benefited 185,198 children that were enrolled in 5,557 daycare centers./DSWD6/Wenna A. Berondo