(From Right to Left) Department of Social Welfare (DSWD) Secretary Judy M. Taguiwalo and United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) Philippines Representative and Country Director Praveen Agrawal sign the deed of donation and acceptance for the Mechanized Production System installed at the DSWD National Resource Operations Center (NROC) during its ceremonial turnover held at the DSWD Katapatan Board Room, Batasan Hills, Quezon City.

Recognizing the need to further strengthen the Philippines’ disaster preparedness and response capabilities, the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) has formally turned over today to the Philippine government, through the Department of Social Welfare and Development,  the Mechanized Production System (MPS) which is installed at the DSWD-National Resource Operations Center  in Pasay City.

The mechanized production system is one of the projects of the DSWD in collaboration with the WFP and the Office of Civil Defense (OCD). It was first implemented in 2014 with the intent to improve the disaster response cluster of the Philippines through the establishment of disaster response hubs across the country. Its operation is also meant to enhance the capacity and efficiency of the NROC and the DSWD’s logistics and production hubs.

The mechanized production system is composed of equipment which automates and streamlines the production of family food packs (FFPs) so the DSWD can quickly and efficiently provide relief resources to local government units (LGUs) around the country.

The machinery also increases the production capacity of the NROC from 20,000 FFPs to 100,000 FFPs per day using both the manual and mechanized production mechanisms. These FFPs contain food enough to feed more than 500,000 people for three days.

The mechanized system has been proven to be effective in calamities. Since its installation in September 2015, out of the total 1,752,069 food packs distributed by the NROO to disaster survivors, some 1,086,081 FFPs were produced using the mechanized production mechanism alone. It continues to help the DSWD augment resources to its regional hubs and LGUs across the country.

Aside from the mechanized production feature of the NROC, a pallet racking system was also installed to improve the accessibility, mobility and tracking of goods inside the NROC warehouses. It also increased the NROC’s warehouse capacity by 189.4%.

“Our country’s vulnerability to disasters and calamities is one of the things that threaten our food security. We need all the assistance that we can get from our different partners, and we are very glad to have the WFP among those we work with in our continuing efforts to deliver relief assistance as soon as there is a need for it in our communities. We welcome the significant contributions of the WFP to ensure the prompt and adequate delivery of relief resources to disaster victims,” said DSWD Sec. Judy M. Taguiwalo.

“We cannot overemphasize the importance of this mechanized production system to our disaster relief efforts. The new administration of the DSWD saw how useful and very valuable it was during the last strong typhoons – Ferdie, Lawin and Nina – and we were able to deliver almost immediately family food packs to Filipinos in need because the system of preparing them was very efficient and mechanized,” Sec. Taguiwalo added.

“But even in less dramatic times of calamities such as fires and sudden floods, we see the usefulness of the system. We are able to prepare and release family food packs to families devastated by fires such as the one that razed over 1,000 houses in Bacoor Cavite only last Wednesday,” she continued.

Sec. Taguiwalo also took advantage of what she said was a good opportunity and brought up the need for another warehouse and the installation of the mechanized production system in Mindanao.

“We all know the myriad calamities both natural and man-made that take place in Mindanao on a regular basis. For the DSWD to have a warehouse and a MPS is very important so we can respond immediately to the needs of Filipinos affected by the said disasters there,” she said.

Finally, she assured the DSWD’s partners in the WFP that the agency will continue to work and ensure a transparent and corruption-free agency for the Filipino people.”

“This means that we will ensure that all assistance you provide us along with the government’s resources will be efficiently and effectively maximized for the people, especially for those in need,” she concluded. ###