ARB's agri products to be used for food requirements in prisons, hospitals
Agricultural products produced by agrarian reform beneficiaries (ARBs) will be sourced out to meet the regular food requirements of prisons and hospitals in Zamboanga Peninsula and Caraga Region.
Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) Secretary John Castriciones led the virtual signing of a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on Tuesday, July 21, with the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) and district hospitals to help boost the income of ARBs in these regions amid the coronavirus pandemic.

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This will also enable the farmers to avoid negotiating with middlemen who usually dictate low prices for their commodities, he added.
The partnership is being implemented under the government’s Enhanced Partnership Against Hunger and Poverty Program (EPAHPP) wherein government institutions converged to support the poor people in the countryside.
The attendees in Zamboanga Peninsula include 15 agrarian reform beneficiaries’ organizations (ARBOs) and BJMP offices in Zamboanga del Sur, Zamboanga del Norte, and Zamboanga Sibugay.
It was also participated in by four ARBOs, eight district hospitals, and BJMP headquarters in Caraga Region.
Undersecretary for Support Services Emily Padilla said this is the second time DAR has successfully conducted a virtual signing of agreement.
“We have conducted the very first successful virtual signing of MOU in the country and it was done in Pampanga involving the DAR, BJMP, and ARBOs in Region 3. We received positive feedback from our farmers there since the partnership,” Padilla said.
Regional Directors Leomides Villareal and Ramon Madronal Jr. from Caraga Region and Zamboanga Peninsula, respectively, both signified their commitment to supervise and fully support this program for the improvement of the economic conditions of the ARBs.