Secretary Domingo F. Panganiban, lead convenor of the National Anti-Poverty Commission (NAPC), announced today that Gawad Kalinga (GK), a group that help uplift the lives of many poor families, had collaborated with NAPC to fight poverty.

According to Panganiban, a strong partnership with GK could help transform the gains of the booming economy into people-centered growth with stronger focus in priority provinces of the country.

Tony Meloto, head of GK, said that he decided to ally with NAPC in its poverty alleviation programs because he is confident with the Secretary, who has the integrity to push a strong partnership to help the poor.

Meloto told Panganiban that with GK partners, it has transformed poverty stricken areas by building homes for the homeless. To date, Gawad Kalinga is in over 1,500 communities all over the Philippines. The goal of GK is to build 700,000 houses till 2010.

Meloto described Panganiban as anti-poverty ‘czar’, who can turn the most disadvantaged corners of the country into zones of opportunity and development. As former Agriculture Secretary, Meloto said that Panganiban’s talents can help GK. GK’s vision for the Philippines is a slum-free, squatter-free nation through a simple strategy of providing land for the landless, homes for the homeless, food for the hungry and as a result providing dignity and peace for every Filipino.

The objective of the alliance, Panganiban said is to collaborate with local government units and stakeholders to reduce the incidence of poverty by half in 2010.