LGU MANOLO FORTICH VYES IN WALANG GUTOM AWARDS THROUGH HUMAN MILK-HUB PROJECT

Walang Gutom Awards

The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) and Galing Pook Foundation (GPF) signed a Memorandum of Agreement on September 14, 2023, launching the “Walang Gutom Awards.” The award shall recognize the 10 LGUs in the Philippines with the Best Anti-Hunger Initiatives, which have been actively implemented for more than a year. The 10 winning LGUs will receive a total of P2 Million each.

The Local Government Unit of Manolo Fortich seized the opportunity to showcase the human Milk-Hub of the municipality on a national level by participating in the competition. Out of 101 entries, Manolo Fortich is ranked among the top 25 finalists.

The Milk-Hub is under the administration of the Municipal Nutrition Office and can be described as one of the best municipal initiatives aimed at preventing hunger among infants under two years old. The LGU launched the program with the goal of preventing malnutrition, such as stunting, in the municipality by providing infants with the pasteurized breast milk they require for healthy growth and development.

In the worst situations, premature babies born to mothers who passed away during childbirth are among the beneficiaries of the donated breast milk. Other situations involve mothers who are ill and were admitted to the hospital or who are placed in isolation, and those who are unable to produce breast milk or do not meet the needed dose for their child. These are among the cases that really validate the importance of the milk-hub in the municipality.

May 16, 2024 - The MNO presented the human milk-hub in front of the National Screening Committee of the GPF via a zoom meeting inside the Municipal Mayor’s conference room. Municipal Nutrition Action Officer Rikkie Mae Lucero presented the importance of the milk-hub and its operations, such as pasteurizing breast milk to prevent contamination, the equipment they use, their facility, how they operate in terms of distribution, how they conduct their milk drive, and how they find their donors, etc.

The LGU project team was present, with Mayor Rogelio N. Quiño showing his full support for the human milk-hub. Sangguniang Bayan members Coun. Joy Cordovez and Coun. Christy Leparto Salabe, as part of the team, were also present. The second part of the meeting was conducted between the National Screening Committee and the program’s private partners, composed of the Cagayan de Oro Executive Lions Club, Women’s Federation, Modern Nanays of Mindanao, and donor representatives and recipients, for the committee to get a full view of the program through their perspectives.