JUST when Filipino farmers are veering away from planting rice, vegetables and fruits comes this idea from the Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) pushing for a communal settlement where prisoners would take the lead role in the country’s quest for food security and zero hunger.
In a memorandum of agreement (MOA) between the Department of Agriculture (DA) and the Department of Justice (DOJ) for the implementation of the Reformation Initiative for Sustainable Environment for Food Security (RISE) Project, the government is actually vying for what appears to be rehabilitative justice.
The synergy among these departments and its line agencies including the BuCor (under the DOJ) and the Bureau of Plant Industry (under DA) is commendable because reforming prisoners should not be limited to confinement behind bars.
Under the RISE program, detainees who are three years away from completing their sentence could actually be productive and ready for their much-awaited reintegration with the society by learning farm skills and livelihood from which they can raise money since they would be getting their rightful share of its proceeds.
That in itself is an honest-to-goodness rehabilitation.
By investing in these capacity-building activities, we are not only helping boost food production but also giving the so-called persons deprived of liberty opportunities to realize their potential for positive change and for reformation, and simultaneously ensure hunger prevention, poverty alleviation and better health.
However, BuCor’s RISE Program may not be enough because what they have under their sleeves is too small and mathematically impossible to yield enough food to feed 110 million Filipinos.
Perhaps, other agencies – even though their mandates have nothing to do with agriculture – should seriously consider doing their share if only to ensure that not one Filipino would skip meals simply because there isn’t enough supply to feed the entire population.
National government agencies with the help of the private sector should pursue innovative projects that address the needs that evolve now in this modern age for Filipinos. By making innovation our priority, we can expedite the delivery of programs and services and build a more robust economy.
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