Laguna’s cacao farmers advocate for COVID-19 vaccination
Farmers step up to ensure families are safe from COVID-19 and ready with the new normal
Laguna, 18 May 2023 – All sectors in the food industry were hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic. Cacao (unprocessed version of cocoa) farmers in Nagcarlan, a municipality in the province of Laguna, were no exception. Their main products, tablea (ground cacao beans) and suman (sticky rice), were left unsold.
Despite the pandemic’s impact on their livelihood, these farmers were ready to extend a helping hand to make sure their families, as well as the whole community, are safe and can bounce back with resilience in the new normal.
Mobilizing farmers to support COVID-19 vaccination
In the earlier phases of the COVID-19 vaccination rollout in the country, UNICEF, with support from the Australian government and in partnership with Relief International, worked closely with the municipal government of Nagcarlan, as well as other local governments in Region IV-A, in increasing vaccine acceptance and uptake among its communities. The assistance to local governments includes mobilizing, engaging, and drawing support from community-based groups, leaders, and influencers, including those representing the most vulnerable, marginalized, and at-risk populations and sectors, such as farmers and fisherfolk.
In mapping potential partners to support COVID-19 vaccination, social mobilizers from UNICEF and Relief International easily identified the Cacao Farmers’ Association of Nagcarlan (CFAN), a community-based organization established to teach local farmers how to market and process cacao products, as unlikely advocates of vaccination in their communities and spheres of influence.
While they were bearing the economic brunt of the pandemic, the farmers from CFAN were aware that reclaiming their normal lives– and livelihood– as quickly as possible would entail working together and with the government for the protection and safety of entire communities.
“When restrictions on mobility and community quarantines were imposed, the lives of our farmers were disrupted. They could not go to work,” shares Marites Caña, the secretary of CFAN. “Our priority was to get our source of income back. We knew that we needed to do something, we were willing to help. We just didn’t know where to start.”
“Our priority was to get our source of income back. We knew that we needed to do something, we were willing to help. We just didn’t know where to start.”
Marites said that with no access to or information about any platform or opportunity for the farmers to support the COVID-19 response, they were grateful that UNICEF and Relief International reached out first. When UNICEF and Relief International started providing support to the municipal government of Nagcarlan in August 2021, they immediately built a list of potential partners with membership, resources, expertise, and influence that can be leveraged to promote COVID-19 vaccination and prevention.
To engage CFAN, social mobilizers from UNICEF and Relief International worked with the rural health unit of Nagcarlan to conduct a series of orientations for their members and shared important information and updates about COVID-19 and the vaccination program. The social mobilizers also took the opportunity to convince the farmers who were still hesitant to get their vaccines.
“The sessions were helpful in getting more of our members vaccinated, and in encouraging us to do more beyond getting our vaccines,” adds Marites.
Following the orientations, CFAN initiated their own vaccine promotion activities, which were conducted mostly through social media and small gatherings with their farmers.
As of May 2022, all 45 active members of CFAN have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19.
To engage CFAN, social mobilizers from UNICEF and Relief International worked with the rural health unit of Nagcarlan to conduct a series of orientations for their members and shared important information and updates about COVID-19 and the vaccination program.
Supporting frontliners with their hot chocolate and suman
During one of the orientations with UNICEF and Relief International, the rural health unit shared how their limited resources made it more challenging to deliver the vaccination services, particularly providing community health workers and other frontliners with support on transportation and meals.
To help address this challenge, one of the farmers suggested for CFAN to distribute free hot chocolate and suman, their specialty products, for health workers and frontliners at the checkpoints and in vaccination sites.
“Since we could not sell our products, we thought of giving them instead to our frontliners for free,” explains Marites. “Not only were we able to help our health workers and frontliners, we were also able to share the health benefits of cacao products.”
“Not only were we able to help our health workers and frontliners, we were also able to share the health benefits of cacao products.”
While the support of the Australian Government, UNICEF, and Relief International to local governments focus on risk communication and community engagement to address social and behavioral barriers to vaccination, established linkages and partnerships with community-based organizations like CFAN become instrumental in addressing practical and operational gaps, such as limited resources, in successfully delivering the vaccines to eligible populations.
From 14 percent in August 2021, the vaccination coverage of Nagcarlan rose to 66 percent by the end of the implementation of the support in May 2022.
According to Marites, nothing is more rewarding than knowing how their small actions and support contributed to protecting more families and communities in their hometown. “We are happy that our simple act of kindness was able to help our community become safer, healthier, and more protected from COVID-19.”
From 14 percent in August 2021, the vaccination coverage of Nagcarlan rose to 66 percent by the end of the implementation of the support in May 2022.
