Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, July 13) — The government on Thursday signed an agreement on the use of tillable lands within the Bureau of Corrections’ (BuCor) prison reservations and penal farms nationwide as “agricultural camps or food production centers” to help the country achieve food security.
The Department of Agriculture (DA) and the Department of Justice (DOJ) inked a memorandum of agreement on their joint project called “Reformation Initiative for Sustainable Environment for Food Security” or RISE, which President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said would help in both food production and improving rehabilitative justice practices for persons deprived of liberty (PDLs).
Apart from using BuCor lands for agro-industrial projects, Malacañ ang said the RISE initiative will facilitate the rehabilitation of PDLs through agricultural production training.
\”We are not only helping boost food production but also giving our PDLs opportunities to realize their potential for positive change and for reformation,” said Marcos, who concurrently serves as DA chief, during the signing ceremony.
The government added that the program seeks to improve PDLs’ meal nutrition and dietary quality with a year-round harvest of fruits and vegetables.
