Participants and facilitators of the consultation workshop
LOS BAÑOS, Philippines—To bolster food security and nutrition education in the Philippines, the Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA) is championing the enhancement of the Department of Education's (DepEd) Gulayan sa Paaralan Program (GPP). Through its School-plus-Home Gardens cum Biodiversity Enhancement and Enterprise (SHGBEE) Program, SEARCA builds upon the GPP's foundation to demonstrate how integrating school and home gardens can significantly improve child nutrition, strengthen food security, and enhance community livelihoods.
The SEARCA-led SHGBEE Program creates a vital link between education, agriculture, nutrition, and enterprise through nutrition-sensitive gardens, biodiversity conservation, and livelihood initiatives across Philippine sites. Recognizing the need to sustain these gains, SEARCA is now collaborating with DepEd, local government units, and community partners to harmonize the GPP and SHGBEE through a unified monitoring and evaluation (M&E) tool developed through a series of workshops to support nationwide monitoring and continuous program improvement. On 11–12 November 2025, SEARCA held a consultation workshop to finalize this M&E tool.
From left: Dr. Nur Azura binti Adam of SEARCA delivers her welcome remarks, Dr. Editha Atendido of DepEd gives the opening message, Dr. Gerlie Tatlonghari of SEARCA provides the workshop overview, and Ms. Anna Gale Vallez of SEARCA facilitates the workshop.
The event gathered 39 participants from the Schools Division Offices of Laguna, Rizal, and Palawan, including public schools district supervisors , School Governance and Operations Division and Curriculum Implementation Division chiefs, head teachers, principals, and non-teaching personnel. The workshop provided a collaborative venue to refine the M&E framework to ensure its alignment with DepEd's objectives of strengthening food security, nutrition education, and sustainable livelihood initiatives through school and home gardening.
Dr. Gerlie Tatlonghari (at rostrum) provides an overview of the project and its timeline.
The program began with welcome remarks by Dr. Nur Azura binti Adam, SEARCA Deputy Director for Programs, who expressed her enthusiasm for the workshop's potential results and her appreciation for the partnership forged through the SHGBEE program. Dr. Editha Atendido, DepEd Schools Division Superintendent of Laguna, gave the opening remarks. She conveyed gratitude for the invitation and the division's multi-year relationship with SEARCA, expressing hope that this collaborative model would inspire other divisions and provinces.
Participants from the DepEd Divisions of Laguna and Palawan engage actively in discussions to refine the M&E tool.
To set the context, Dr. Gerlie Tatlonghari, Program Head of SEARCA's Research and Thought Leadership Department (RTLD), delivered a comprehensive overview of the project and its objectives. Ms. Anna Gale Vallez, Program Specialist, RTLD, then led the main workshop session, beginning with a review of DepEd Memorandum No. 223, series of 2016. She facilitated a hands-on activity where participants completed templates focused on the M&E tool's indicators. Leveraging their experience using the tool, participants discussed practical concerns and offered specific recommendations for enhancement.
Members of the DepEd Rizal Division participate actively in discussions that aim to enhance the M&E tool.
Following the working session, representatives from the Laguna, Rizal, and Palawan school divisions presented their findings. They outlined the identified issues and suggested refinements for the M&E tool. These presentations set the stage for an open forum that enabled participants to collaboratively refine the M&E tool based on shared feedback.
Los Baños Municipal Mayor Neil Andrew Nocon shares an inspiring message.
The workshop was graced by Los Baños Municipal Mayor Neil Andrew Nocon, who commended the partnership between SEARCA and DepEd and pledged the local government's strong support for long-term collaboration. He also detailed a new municipal initiative aimed at promoting cultural tourism: a "historical tour" of Los Baños designed to highlight sites associated with Dr. Jose Rizal and other local landmarks.
Participants from DepEd Laguna Division actively discuss refinements of the M&E tool.
Post-workshop, the M&E tool will undergo a comprehensive revision to integrate participant feedback. The enhanced draft will be disseminated to the DepEd Schools Divisions of Laguna, Rizal, and Palawan for final review and validation. Subsequently, a formal policy document containing the finalized instrument and recommendations will be submitted to the DepEd Central Office. The ultimate objective is for this validated tool to serve as the official, standardized instrument for all future monitoring and evaluation of school garden programs.