Second Harvest Japan Sends Food Relief to an NGO School in the Poorest Section of Manila
Second Harvest Japan (2HJ) provided food to the Philippine Christian Foundation (PCF) which is located in Tondo, Manila. PCF educates children and provides other services to support the families of the school children and others in the community. At their school, they provide breakfast and lunch to 450 pupils. In November 2011 Second Harvest Asia (2HA) Executive Director Yusuke Wada visited the school on the dumpsite where PCF provides services to see firsthand their operations. 2HA is in the process of founding a local food bank in the Philippines, and NGOs like PCF are important partners to develop food banking in the country.
Part 1
PCF School
When I arrived at the school the students were playing in their courtyard. The school has 450 pupils who come from neighboring areas.
This triangle-shaped school building has a courtyard for children to play in.
The school building was made from donated shipping containers. I was impressed on how clean and well-kept the building was.
Some mothers work at the school making products such as handbags and other fashion items from recycled material. PCS in turn sells these products domestically and internationally to generate income for both the mothers and the school.
These are necklaces made from recycled magazines.
I was impressed by PCF’s comprehensive approach to cope with the poverty of children and their families in the poor community.
“To permanently improve the quality of life for the poorest Filipino communities, through education, nutrition, health, medical and family enhancement programs, regardless of religion, race or political boundaries.”
Second Harvest Asia will develop the regional food bank network in Asia to share best practices and experiences with other food banks. We hold online meetings regularly with Asian food bank members. If you are interested in joining our regional network, please contact us at info@secondharvestasia.org.