The Department of Social Welfare and Development will expand its “Walang Gutom Kitchen” initiative to provincial areas this year, focusing on regions with high poverty rates.
DSWD Undersecretary Eduardo Punay said the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM), Leyte, Samar, and the Bicol region will be the primary focus.
“We’re scaling up in provincial areas identified and targeted based on poverty incidence, following the instructions of Secretary Rex Gatchalian,” Punay said during the Saturday News Forum in Quezon City.
The “Walang Gutom Kitchen,” launched in Pasay City in December, operates as a food bank and soup kitchen that primarily serves families and individuals experiencing involuntary hunger, including those living on the streets.
The initiative has drawn support from private sector partners, encouraging businesses to donate food to combat hunger and reduce food wastage.
The Walang Gutom Kitchen is a collaborative effort between the government and private entities, including “Kain Tayo Pilipinas,” a consortium of businesses with food-related corporate social responsibility initiatives.
“Anyone experiencing hunger can walk in. The kitchen is open to everyone in need,” Punay said, emphasizing the inclusive nature of the initiative.
As this developed, Punay said some 300,000 Filipinos benefited from the “Walang Gutom Food Stamp Program” in 2024.
Introduced in 2023, the program provides food-poor families with monthly food credits worth P3,000.
“Last year, we onboarded 300,000 beneficiaries out of our one-million target. This year, we’re scaling up to serve another 300,000, with the remaining 400,000 to be covered in 2026,” Punay said.
