Question & AnswerQ&A (DA ADMINISTRATIVE ORDER NO. 05)
The main policy objective is to empower the Filipino constituency by enhancing their capability to produce their own food through various means of vegetable growing, consistent with the goal to attain food self-reliance and self-sufficiency.
The Department of Agriculture (DA) is the lead agency responsible for spearheading the implementation of the Gulayan sa Paaralan program.
The specific objectives include: promoting vegetable production through natural farming in public elementary and high schools; establishing and maintaining school gardens to serve as food baskets to sustain supplementary feeding; and showcasing small-scale food production models in schools for replication by households and communities to promote family food security.
The program covers all public elementary and high schools in 16 regions including the National Capital Region, targeting a total of 42,076 school gardens nationwide by 2016.
Each participating school must have at least a minimum of two hundred square meters (200 square meters) of vacant lot for use as a school garden.
Participating schools must establish and maintain school gardens, produce seeds for next cropping, assign a focal person to supervise the program, integrate the program into DepEd activities, and partner actively with Parent Teachers Associations. All harvests belong to the school and can be sold or used for supplementary feeding.
DepEd leads the implementation of the program in coordination with DA, promotes vegetable consumption among children, provides sites for school gardens, sustains the program through resource allocation, and mainstreams program budget requirements in development plans.
Quality seeds and plant materials are sourced from government/DA stations, and other necessary materials not available from government facilities are procured from members of the Philippine Seed Industry Association (PSIA).
A competition will be launched district-wide for the best school gardens to sustain interest, and incentives for winners such as school buildings, computers, water systems, and garden tools will be solicited from legislators and local government officials.
LGUs co-partner in implementation and monitoring of the program, provide technical assistance especially in vegetable growing, offer resources in supporting the program, and help sustain local-level efforts.