Nueva Vizcaya – As the entire Luzon was placed under the Enhanced Community Quarantine (ECQ) on March 16, 2020, the government’s attempt at preventing the spread of COVID-19, households belonging to the vulnerable  such as daily wage earners and informal settlers were faced with the dilemma of sourcing out means for a living.

 

Even with the assurance from the national government that food and supplies shall be rationed by the local government to all affected households, its delivery was severely affected by availability of transport vehicle, fewer workers to distribute goods, strict adherence to social distancing as well as the considerable distances between homes especially in rural areas.

 

For the 25-member cluster group of Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) beneficiaries of Barangay Busilac, Bayombong, Nueva Vizcaya, this was an opportunity for them to apply the value of Financial Literacy and Bayanihan spirit discussed during their Family Development Sessions.

 

The group started a 4Ps communal Bio-Intensive Garden (BIG) in the first quarter of 2019 with string beans, eggplant, okra, papaya and some leafy vegetables. Usually, the produce is equally distributed among the members but since each of the households already had their own backyard garden, the produce was instead sold to neighbors on a weekly basis which yielded a total income of 10,500.00 at the end of the year.

The income was initially intended for another livelihood project but with the declaration of ECQ which directly suspended some 4Ps activities, the group decided to put their savings to good use. Junalyn Dangan, the group’s Parent Leader (PL) recognized that while they all have backyard gardens, many of them still purchased rice from the market daily. It was then that the group decided to purchase bags of rice to distribute to everyone while waiting for their cash grants to arrive.

 

According to her, “Mas mainam na bigas (ang bibilhin) para sure na may maisaing… kaysa iba ang bibilhin. At least meron habang wala pa silang natatanggap na relief… hati hati nalang kung ilan ang mabibiling bigas (sa nalikom na pera).”

 

The group was able to purchase 10 25-kilogram sacks of rice and managed to distribute 6 sacks of rice among 12 of its members. The rest were kept as a standby stock for anyone who would need more in the future.

The communal garden on the other hand is still maintained on a rotational basis and planted with more variety of vegetables such as bitter gourd, squash, winged bean and pigeon pea aside from the previous crops initially planted. Their produce also helps feed on-duty local government workers who ensure that everyone in the community adheres to the limitations imposed by the quarantine.