Republic of the Philippines 
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
Quezon City 
TWENTIETH CONGRESS 
First Regular Session 
HOUSE BILL NO. ________ 
_____________________________________________________________________ 
Introduced by Representative ANTONINO B. ROMAN III 
_____________________________________________________________________ 
EXPLANATORY NOTE 
The Philippine Constitution guarantees every Filipino the right to adequate 
food and mandates the State to uplift the living standards of the poor. Yet despite 
ongoing poverty alleviation efforts, millions of Filipinos continue to experience 
involuntary hunger due to persistent food insecurity and economic vulnerability. 
According to the 2021 Family Income and Expenditure Survey (FIES) by the 
Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), around 5.9% of the population lived below the 
food threshold -- meaning their income was insufficient to meet even the most basic 
nutritional requirements. This figure represents over one million families struggling to 
meet their daily food needs. 
In response, the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) 
launched the Walang Gutom 2027: Food Stamp Program, which provides monthly 
electronic food credits to the most food-insecure households. The program’s pilot 
implementation in Metro Manila demonstrated that food credits, when properly 
targeted and coupled with partnerships with accredited retailers, nutrition education, 
and basic accountability systems, can effectively reduce hunger, improve dietary 
diversity, and promote healthier household consumption habits. 
The program rests on a simple but powerful logic: if the most food-insecure 
Filipino households are regularly provided with food credits that can only be used to 
purchase nutritious food -- and if these are distributed through an accessible and 
accountable system -- then these households will be able to meet their daily dietary 
requirements, avoid negative coping strategies like skipping meals or selling assets, 
and improve long-term health outcomes. In turn, this strengthens family stability, 
enhances productivity, and reduces intergenerational poverty. 
This bill seeks to institutionalize the Walang Gutom Program as a permanent, 
rights-based national initiative. Doing so will protect it from shifting political 
priorities, ensure consistent funding through the General Appropriations Act, and 
enable its expansion to all regions of the country -- particularly to households with 
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pregnant or lactating women, children under five, the elderly, and persons with 
disabilities. 
Moreover, the program advances the Philippines’ commitment to the 
Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly Goal 2: Zero Hunger, by 
addressing both immediate food needs and the structural barriers that perpetuate 
undernutrition and food insecurity. 
Institutionalizing the Walang Gutom Program affirms that food security is not 
a privilege, but a basic human right. This measure moves us from episodic relief to 
systemic, sustainable, and targeted solutions -- transforming hunger from a chronic 
social condition into a solvable policy problem. 
Immediate approval of this measure is earnestly sought. 
ANTONINO B. ROMAN III


Republic of the Philippines 
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
Quezon City 
TWENTIETH CONGRESS 
First Regular Session 
HOUSE BILL NO. ________ 
_____________________________________________________________________ 
Introduced by Representative ANTONINO B. ROMAN III 
_____________________________________________________________________ 
AN ACT 
INSTITUTIONALIZING THE WALANG GUTOM PROGRAM  
AS A FOOD STAMP INITIATIVE TO COMBAT INVOLUNTARY 
HUNGER, PROVIDING FUNDS THEREFOR, 
 AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES 
Be it enacted by the Senate and the House of Representatives of the Philippines in 
Congress assembled: 
SECTION 1. Short Title. -- This Act shall be known as the “Walang Gutom Act of 
2025.” 
SECTION 2. Declaration of Policy. -- It is the policy of the State to promote social 
justice, reduce poverty, and protect the family as a basic autonomous social 
institution. The State shall guarantee the right of every Filipino to freedom from 
hunger and shall ensure adequate food intake, especially for the most vulnerable 
sectors. 
The State affirms its obligations under the Universal Declaration of Human 
Rights and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights to 
guarantee the right to adequate food. 
SECTION 3. Definition of Terms. -- For purposes of this Act, the following terms 
shall mean: 
a.
Walang Gutom Program – A national food stamp program aimed at addressing
involuntary hunger by providing eligible beneficiaries with electronic food
credits for the purchase of nutritious food items.
b. Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) – A system that allows the transfer of food
credits through reloadable cards to be used at accredited partner-merchants.
c.
Food Poverty Line – The minimum monthly income required by a family to
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meet basic food requirements, computed and regularly updated by the 
Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), and serving as a basis for benefit levels 
and eligibility. 
 
d. Eligible Beneficiaries – Households whose income falls below the food 
poverty line, with prioritization for families with pregnant or lactating women, 
children under five, senior citizens, or persons with disabilities. 
 
e. Listahan ng mga Pamilyang Nangangailangan (Listahanan) – Also known as 
the National Household Targeting System for Poverty Reduction (NHTS-PR), 
an information management system of the Department of Social Welfare and 
Development (DSWD) that identifies who and where the poor are in the 
Philippines for purposes of establishing a basis for targeting beneficiaries of 
social protection programs. Inclusion in the Listahanan is determined through 
nationwide household assessments conducted in cycles, the results of which 
are periodically updated to reflect changes in household conditions. 
 
SECTION 4. Establishment of the Walang Gutom Program. -- There is hereby 
established a Walang Gutom Program under the Department of Social Welfare and 
Development (DSWD), which shall implement and oversee the food stamp initiative 
nationwide. 
 
SECTION 5. Program Components. -- The program shall include the following 
components: 
 
a. Identification of Beneficiaries; 
 
b. Distribution of Electronic Benefit Transfer Cards preloaded with monthly food 
credits equivalent to at least Three Thousand Pesos (Php 3,000) per household; 
 
c. Accreditation of Partner-Merchants such as grocery stores, wet markets, and 
cooperatives that will accept food stamps as payment; 
 
d. Nutrition Education and Counseling to ensure proper food choices and prevent 
malnutrition; 
 
e. Regular Monitoring and Evaluation to assess program impact and make 
evidence-based improvements; 
 
f. Limitation of food credit use to eligible food items, as defined by the DSWD 
in consultation with the Department of Health (DOH), which shall not be 
converted to cash nor used to purchase non-food items; and  
 
g. Establishment of alternative benefit delivery mechanisms in geographically 
isolated or disadvantaged areas, with support from LGUs and accredited 
community-based organizations, ensuring offline accessibility and inclusivity. 
 
SECTION 6. Beneficiary Identification. – For purposes of determining eligibility 
under this Act, the DSWD shall utilize the most recent official results of the 
Listahanan household assessment cycle and Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) 


poverty data. The DSWD shall ensure that beneficiary identification is based on 
updated and validated data to reflect current household conditions. In the event that a 
new cycle is ongoing or pending validation, the DSWD may provisionally use the 
latest available official results, subject to immediate updating upon completion of the 
subsequent cycle. 
 
SECTION 7. Phased Implementation. -- The Walang Gutom Program shall be 
implemented in phases, beginning with the bottom one (1) million households 
nationwide based on the most recent Listahanan and Philippine Statistics Authority 
(PSA) poverty data. Priority shall be given to households with pregnant or lactating 
women, children under five (5) years old, persons with disabilities, and senior 
citizens. Expansion to additional households shall be subject to evaluation and 
availability of funds.  
 
LGUs shall assist in program dissemination, field validation, grievance 
handling, and beneficiary profiling, in coordination with the DSWD. 
 
SECTION 8. Local Government Counterpart and Participation. -- Local 
Government Units (LGUs) shall be encouraged to provide a counterpart fund for the 
implementation of the Walang Gutom Program within their jurisdictions. The national 
government may provide matching grants or incentives to LGUs that commit 
resources or implement complementary hunger mitigation programs with adjustments 
for household composition and nutritional vulnerability, including higher allocations 
for families with pregnant or lactating women, based on Department of Health 
nutritional standards. 
 
SECTION 9. Integration with Existing Social Protection Programs. -- The 
DSWD shall ensure that the Walang Gutom Program complements and integrates 
with other national programs such as the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps), 
the Department of Education's school-based feeding programs, and the Department of 
Agriculture’s food distribution initiatives to ensure coherence, avoid duplication, and 
maximize impact. 
 
SECTION 10. Lead Implementing Agency. -- The DSWD shall be the primary 
implementing agency and may coordinate with the following: 
 
a. Department of Health (DOH); 
 
b. Department of Agriculture (DA); 
 
c. Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG); 
 
d. National Nutrition Council (NNC); 
 
e. Local Government Units (LGUs); and 
 
f. Non-Government Organizations and Civil Society Partners. 
 
SECTION 11. Funding. -- The amount necessary to implement the program shall be 
charged against the annual appropriations of the DSWD. Thereafter, such sums as 


may be necessary for its continued implementation shall be included in the annual 
General Appropriations Act (GAA). 
 
 
The DSWD shall be authorized to receive grants, donations, and other forms 
of assistance from public or private, domestic or international sources. 
 
SECTION 12. Private Sector Engagement and Alternative Financing. -- The 
Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) is authorized to enter into 
partnerships with private sector entities for the co-financing, support, or 
implementation of the Walang Gutom Program. Contributions by private partners 
may be recognized as part of their Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) programs 
and may be eligible for tax incentives under existing laws. 
 
Partner merchants shall offer eligible food items that meet the nutritional 
standards set by the Department of Health (DOH) and National Nutrition Council 
(NNC). 
 
SECTION 13. Appropriations for Program Scale-Up. -- To accelerate coverage 
and impact, Congress shall appropriate an initial amount of Five Billion Pesos (Php 
5,000,000,000) for the nationwide scale-up of the Walang Gutom Program in the 
fiscal year following the effectivity of this Act. 
 
SECTION 14. Monitoring, Evaluation, and Independent Assessment. -- An 
independent evaluation of the program’s effectiveness, efficiency, and impact shall be 
conducted annually in partnership with recognized institutions such as the Philippine 
Institute for Development Studies (PIDS), academic organizations, or civil society 
networks. Results shall guide subsequent phases and improvements of the program. 
 
SECTION 15. Penal Clause. -- Any person who commits fraud or misrepresentation 
to receive or misuse program benefits shall be penalized in accordance with relevant 
laws, including but not limited to the Revised Penal Code, the Anti-Graft and Corrupt 
Practices Act, and RA 10175 or the Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012. 
 
SECTION 16. Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR). -- Within ninety (90) 
days from the effectivity of this Act, the DSWD, in consultation with stakeholders, 
shall promulgate the necessary rules and regulations for the effective implementation 
of this Act. 
 
SECTION 17. Separability Clause. -- If any provision of this Act is declared 
unconstitutional, the remainder shall not be affected and shall continue to be in full 
force and effect. 
 
SECTION 18. Repealing Clause. -- All laws, decrees, executive orders, rules and 
regulations inconsistent with this Act are hereby repealed or amended accordingly. 
 
SECTION 19. Effectivity. -- This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its 
publication in the Official Gazette or in a newspaper of general circulation. 
 
 
Approved,