A New Cycle Begins With Children at the Center
GENERAL SANTOS CITY - The launch of the 16th Cycle gives General Santos City’s nutrition efforts another concrete step forward. The city’s Sangguniang Panlungsod has already authorized Mayor Lorelie Geronimo Pacquiao to enter into a memorandum of agreement with DSWD Region XII for the cycle’s implementation, confirming that the feeding program is part of an established government partnership. The program is intended to provide children with additional nutritious food during their time in participating centers. According to the city government’s information provided for this launch, around 9,500 children are expected to benefit across 240 daycare centers, with each cycle running for 14 days. This gives the initiative a substantial reach among young Heneral families.
A Menu Built Around Familiar, Nutritious Food
The meals planned for the feeding cycle include chicken, eggs, fish, vegetables, pancake mix, and rice, giving children a combination of familiar foods across the program’s meal schedule. Rather than treating feeding as a one-time distribution, the Supplementary Feeding Program is designed to provide continuing nutritional support. DSWD Region XII explained in April that its partnership with General Santos City covers meals and milk for children enrolled in child development centers and supervised neighborhood playgroups, with the broader objective of supporting children’s health, nutrition, and development. The city’s own nutrition ordinance also establishes supplementary feeding as part of its effort to address undernutrition among children, providing a local policy foundation for programs serving daycare and school-age beneficiaries.
Partnership Turns a Food Program Into Continuing Support
The continuation of the feeding program also highlights how national and city agencies can combine resources around a straightforward need: making sure children have access to nutritious food. During the April MOA signing, DSWD Region XII said the partnership would strengthen implementation and improve delivery of social services, while Mayor Pacquiao acknowledged DSWD Secretary Rex Gatchalian for the agency’s support to General Santos. The 16th Cycle now puts that cooperation into action once again. With the city expecting thousands of children to benefit, the program offers more than scheduled meals—it provides families with an additional source of nutrition while children participate in early learning and daycare activities throughout the feeding period.
