THE Regional Development Council in Central Visayas (RDC-7) has moved to create a joint Cebu-Bohol technical working group on food prices and food security, part of a package of measures to stabilize the supply and cost of basic commodities in the region.
The recommendation was approved during a Regional Unified Package for Livelihoods, Industry, Food and Transport (UPLIFT) Committee meeting at the Danao Civic Center in Cebu, chaired by Cebu Gov. Pamela S. Baricuatro.
The proposed technical working group (TWG), initiated by the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), seeks to strengthen coordination between Cebu and Bohol on the supply of fish, seafood and agricultural products.
The group will trace shipping and logistics bottlenecks affecting agricultural goods and seafood, examine pricing practices along the supply chain, and facilitate direct sourcing from local farmers and fishers to help reduce consumer prices.
The committee cited inflation in Central Visayas and Cebu’s reliance — estimated at 70% — on food supplies from outside the province as the basis for forming the group.
DOLE-7 Regional Director Roy L. Buenafe said the region has sufficient food supplies but needs more accurate monitoring of actual demand.
“We are confident that we have supplies, but we have to look at people coming from around so that we can know what is really the measurement of food supply that we need at a given time,” Buenafe said.
The meeting drew heads and representatives of regional line agencies, local government units, the private sector and development organizations.
“These discussions are important because uplifting families, communities and sectors requires coordinated action — especially when prices, livelihood risks and global uncertainties continue to affect our people,” Baricuatro said in her opening message.
Members also reviewed the consolidated status report on the Central Visayas Regional UPLIFT Response, which outlined assistance extended by national government agencies to cushion vulnerable sectors from the economic effects of the conflict in the Middle East.
The report will be submitted to the National UPLIFT Committee, chaired by President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.
The committee likewise examined the region’s inflation report to guide interventions protecting households from rising prices.
Central Visayas was the first region in the country to establish a Regional UPLIFT Committee, created through RDC-7 Resolution No. 1, Series of 2026, following Marcos’ issuance of Executive Order No. 110 on March 24, 2026.
The committee serves as the coordinating body for government interventions in Central Visayas, bringing together national agencies, local governments and private-sector partners to respond to economic disruptions affecting the region. (Marifel Faith S. Hammond /PIA Cebu)
