Stand with rural women and local food producers on World Food(less) Day

Center for Women's Resources Statement 0 Comment
Stand with rural women and local food producers on World Food(less) Day

On World Food(less) Day, the Center for Women’s Resources stands with farmers, fisherfolks, rights defenders, and various organizations in condemning the state’s failure to address the pervasive food insecurity and hunger in the country.

Rising food prices amid stagnant low wages, worsened by decades of agricultural liberalization, have contributed to the escalating number of hungry and impoverished Filipinos. Farmers and fisherfolks, who are our local food producers, often experience hunger themselves, and remain the poorest in the country.

Recent climate disasters have devastated rural communities, yet farmers have received little to no compensation for their losses. The government’s aggressive push for import liberalization not only hampers our capacity for local food production but also threatens the livelihoods of those in agriculture. The extensive land use conversion of agricultural land to non-agricultural uses like commercial and residential, also threatens food production systems, food sovereignty, and farmers’ livelihood.

Worsening this situation is the rampant militarization in the countryside, which makes rural communities—and especially rural women—more vulnerable to violence and displacement. Women farmers and peasant organizers who speak out for land rights and food sovereignty are being red-tagged, harassed, and attacked. Many peasant women leaders face trumped-up charges or have been killed for defending their communities and livelihoods. Among them, Amanda Echanis, a peasant organizer and artist who has been detained in Cagayan Provincial Jail since December 2020 for her advocacy for farmers’ rights and rural women. 

CWR enjoins everyone to support our food producers’ demands for genuine land reform, protection of human rights defenders, and support for domestic food production. Only then can we ensure the right to food for a better life and a better future.#

Women Call for Accountability and Action, Resources must Serve the People!

Center for Women's Resources Statements and Media Releases 0 Comment
Women Call for Accountability and Action, Resources must Serve the People!

The Center for Women’s Resources (CWR) joins the Filipino people in demanding the government to provide immediate support for the victims of Typhoons Nando and Opong, and the recent earthquake that devastated large parts of Visayas Islands. We demand swift action, including the realignment of funds away from corruption-ridden infrastructure projects and militarist policies, towards disaster response.

The Philippines is the world’s most disaster-prone country, according to the 2025 WorldRiskIndex Report. During disasters, women bear the heaviest burdens. From safeguarding and caring of children and the elderly, to facing heightened risks of violence, displacement, and loss of livelihood, women are among the most vulnerable to the impacts of disasters. 

Yet these needs are often overlooked, while public funds are wasted or pocketed by the few and powerful. Billions of pesos that could have been spent on life-saving public services such as disaster mitigation, adaptation, healthcare, and food security are lost. And yet, despite grueling investigations, none has been held accountable.

We call on the Filipino people to continue demanding accountability. Now more than ever, resources must serve the people first. Resources must be used to ensure that relief operations will reach affected communities without delay.

Living on the Edge: Impacts of the Debt Crisis to Filipino Women

Center for Women's Resources Research, Resources 0 Comment
Living on the Edge: Impacts of the Debt Crisis to Filipino Women

The Philippines is a country rich in natural resources, has fertile and arable lands, diverse flora and fauna, extensive coastlines, and rich mineral deposits. The population has reached 114 million, of which, 77.3 million are in the working age. Despite its rich natural and human resources, the Philippine economy remains underdeveloped and around a quarter of its population is living below the poverty line (PSA, 2023).

Due to the decline in production in the industry and the continued reliance on the import and export of low-value goods, trade and government revenue are in the deficit. The country continues to depend primarily on debt and remittances to bridge the trade and expenses of the government.

Read and download: https://centerforwomensresources.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/CWR_Living-on-the-Edge-Impacts-of-the-Debt-Crisis-to-Filipino-Women_April-2024.pdf

No Longer Silent in the Face of Injustice

Center for Women's Resources Statement 0 Comment
No Longer Silent in the Face of Injustice

The recent mass protests against corruption are reminders that the Filipino people will not remain silent in the face of injustice. These protests are both an expression of outrage and our collective hope and demand for accountability and justice.

We must recognize that resistance takes many forms. Organized demonstrations, education work, grassroots organizing, and different other acts of resistance are essential in challenging the system that benefits a few while exploiting the many. But we must also understand that when protests become confrontational, they are not senseless acts. They are natural responses to the very systemic violence people endure every single day. From the violence of corruption, lack of social services, and of being denied the basic conditions for a dignified life.

These show not only the depth of our desperation, but the refusal of our communities to continue living under the same system for the years to come. We are now faced with the reality that resistance, in all its forms, is a fight for our survival.

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