A total of 15,599 family food packs (FFPs) worth PHP5.7 million are being readied by the Department of Social Welfare and Development-13 (DSWD-Caraga) as part of the agency’s preparation for relief augmentation to the families affected by Coronavirus disease (Covid-19).

“The number of FFPs will increase in the coming days as repacking is still ongoing at our Disaster Operations Center in Tiniwisan, Butuan City,” Marko Davey Reyes of the DSWD-13 information office told Philippine News Agency on Wednesday.

Reyes said some of the FFPs have been delivered to six preposition areas in the provinces and are ready for distribution if needed.

“We usually do the augmentation through the request of the local government units (LGUs). These FFPs are ready to augment their needs,” Reyes said.

He said some of the FFPs were prepositioned in Surigao City in Surigao del Norte, San Jose in the province of Dinagat Islands, Tandag City in Surigao del Sur, Prosperidad in Agusan del Sur, and in Dapa, Siargao Islands, Surigao del Norte.

The rest of the FFPs are still at the Disaster Operations Center in Tiniwisan, he added.

Reyes said the FFPs can also be utilized in food for work programs and projects that will be undertaken by the LGUs, or be distributed under the Assistance for Individuals in Crisis Situation (AICS) in the LGU levels.

“We have enough food packs for the people of Caraga Region,” Reyes said, adding that DSWD-13 still has a standby fund of PHP3 million for FFPs. “Anytime, if there will be requests, we can immediately make procurement through our standby fund.”

Community quarantines are implemented in all provinces and cities in the Caraga as a precautionary measure to contain the spread of Covid-19.

As of Tuesday, Caraga has zero cases of Covid-19, with 32 patients under investigation (PUIs), 13 of them are admitted and 19 are on strict home quarantine.

In the same period, Caraga has a total of 6,485 total persons under monitoring (PUMs) in which 1,507 were cleared and 4,978 are still on monitoring. (PNA)