PRESIDENT Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. said the government is now closer to achieving his commitment of bringing down the price of rice to P20 per kilo.
During the nationwide launch of the Kadiwa ng Pasko Project in Mandaluyong City on Wednesday, the President said they are now able to sell rice at P25 per kilo through the National Food Authority (NFA).
He explained NFA is able to sell its rice at the same price when it bought it from farmers.
“The NFA does not profit from it. The price when it bought the rice is the same when it resells it, that is why the price is at P25,” Marcos said in Filipino.
“We are close to our aspiration to sell [rice] at P20 [per kilo]. We will do it gradually. We can achieve that but we would still have to do a lot of things for it,” he added.
Based on the price monitoring report of the Department of Agriculture (DA), the price of imported and local rice now sells between P38 and P50 per kilo as of November 15, 2022.
Expanded coverage
Marcos, who is also the concurrent agriculture secretary, said he would continue to push for affordable food for the public by further expanding the coverage of the government’s national Kadiwa program.
During its launch, the program initially covered only 14 areas, 11 of which are in the National Capital Region, one in Tacloban City, one in Davao de Oro, and one in Koronadal City, South Cotabato.
Under the Kadiwa program, the government is able to sell food items at lower prices compared to retailers by directly buying from suppliers then reselling it to consumers.
The other expenses to bring the goods to the market, such as transport costs, are shouldered by the government.
It is a joint initiative led by DA together with Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), and Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE).
Marcos said they decided to launch the national Kadiwa program this month to enable consumers, who are preparing for the Christmas holidays, to save on their food expenses.
“We will continue this even after Christmas since it is among the measures the government can do to provide relief to its citizens,” the President said.
Image credits: Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press via AP