Cebu LGUs to start selling P20-per-kilo rice on Monday

Local

AHEAD of its nationwide rollout on May 1, local government units in Cebu will begin selling rice at P20 per kilo on Monday, April 28.

Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia announced the early implementation during a meeting with mayors across the province on Friday, April 25.

Garcia said over 20,000 bags of rice are prepared for distribution, with allocations based on the number of qualified beneficiaries per LGU.

This initiative, led by the Department of Agriculture (DA), fulfills President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.'s campaign promise to lower rice prices and will be carried out in Cebu through Sugbo Merkadong Barato (SMB) outlets, a network previously used by the Capitol to distribute affordable goods.

An estimated 300,000 initial beneficiaries in Cebu will include barangay health and daycare workers, barangay tanods, public school teachers, government employees, farmers, and fisherfolk.

Each beneficiary is entitled to 10 kilos of rice weekly. The province estimates needing 60,000 sacks of rice weekly or 240,000 sacks monthly to meet the demand. Each sack contains 50 kilos.

For the first round, beneficiaries may pay in cash, but starting next week, they will be able to use QR-coded cards for transactions.

New cards will be distributed in the coming days to accommodate more recipients.

Garcia said the Provincial Government will shoulder the cost difference between the current market price and the P20 per kilo rate until the end of 2025.

Starting next year, the national government is expected to fully subsidize the program.

“Wala man gud ni sa budget karon. Muhangyo ko sa mga gobernador karon, pero next year fully subsidized na ni sa National Government aron hangtod na ni 2028. Dili ni para karon lang tungod kay padung ang election,” she said.

(This really isn’t in the budget right now. I’m appealing to the governors for now, but next year this will be fully subsidized by the National Government so it can continue until 2028. This isn’t just for now because the elections are coming.)

The program’s concept was inspired by Cebu’s SMB initiative, which began in November 2023 but was hampered by unreliable supply from the National Food Authority (NFA).

Following Garcia’s discussion with Marcos over lunch on April 11, the President directed the DA to roll out a national version of the program, starting in the Visayas.

DA Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. officially launched the national version during a press conference at the Capitol on April 23, after a closed-door meeting between Marcos and 12 governors from the Visayas regions.

Under the program, rice procured at P33 per kilo will be sold at P20, with the DA and LGUs sharing the P13-per-kilo subsidy.

Laurel said the pilot implementation in the Visayas was chosen due to both high demand and available supply, particularly in areas like Iloilo.

Laurel explained that the government initially considered several distribution models before approving the current setup, which allows each beneficiary to purchase up to 10 kilograms of rice per week or 40 kilograms per month.

He also noted that the program would help clear out “overflowing” stocks from DA warehouses to make way for new harvests.

The Secretary explained that the initiative has become feasible due to the decline in global rice and fuel prices.

Initially planned as a short-term measure until December 2025, the program will now run until 2028, following the President’s directive.

Governors from across the Visayas voiced their support for the program during an April 23 meeting. Siquijor Governor Jake Vincent Villa described it as a necessary and timely intervention to help combat inflation, while Leyte Governor Jericho Petilla confirmed plans for nationwide expansion, with full national government funding expected to begin next year.

Garcia emphasized that what began as a localized effort in Cebu will now extend to benefit families throughout the country.

The P20-per-kilo rice initiative was a key promise in Marcos’ 2022 presidential campaign, which faced public criticism due to the unfulfilled promise three years into his administration.(MyTVCebu)