MSSD’s Mobile Kitchen aims to Support Street Children in Cotabato City
COTABATO CITY (April 26, 2025)—The Ministry of Social Services and Development (MSSD) in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) is taking significant steps to assist children living on the streets. On April 24, 2025, the MSSD received a new mobile community kitchen, a key component of their “Key Actions towards Lifting Young Bangsamoro through Empowerment” (KALYE) project.
This initiative aims to provide comprehensive support to at least 400 children in street situations (CISS) in Cotabato City this year. The mobile kitchen will offer daily hot meals for 120 days. After the meals, children will participate in structured learning sessions focused on hygiene, life skills, values, and their rights. These sessions will be led by trained educators collaborating with local government units.
Arbaine Guiabar, Project Evaluation Officer II at the MSSD, emphasized the kitchen’s importance, stating that it serves as a bridge not only to food but also to education, healing, and a brighter future. “We are reaching children where they are—in the streets—to offer them alternatives, not just in education, but in life,” Guiabar explained.
The KALYE project takes a holistic approach, prioritizing children’s rights and providing alternatives to street life. Children in the program will also receive assistance with enrolling in the Alternative Learning System (ALS) and will be provided with school supplies and a PhP5,000 educational subsidy.
Eligibility for the KALYE project is limited to impoverished, out-of-school, unmarried children under 18 who are not already receiving assistance from other major programs such as 4Ps, ABaKa, or Layag Bajau.
The MSSD’s acquisition of the mobile kitchen aligns with its mandate under the Bangsamoro Organic Law and Administrative Code, which emphasizes the protection and empowerment of marginalized children in the region. (USM OJT Student: Melody N. Flores, BMN/Bangsamoro Today)
