Cezario Joel Espejo, director of the Department of Social Welfare and Development-Region 12 (Photo courtesy of DSWD-12)
GENERAL SANTOS CITY – The national government has allotted around PHP5.9 billion in financial assistance this year for the “poorest of the poor” families in Region 12 (Soccsksargen) that are covered by the conditional cash transfer program.
Cezario Joel Espejo, director of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD)-Region 12, said Tuesday the funds will cover the monthly cash grants until December of the program’s 244,427 household-beneficiaries in the region.
He said the approved allocation increased by around PHP200,000 or from PHP5.7 billion last year due to the inclusion of an additional 1,857 beneficiaries.
The new beneficiaries were among the households that qualified for the initiative, also known as Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps), based on the results of the “Listahanan” or the National Household Targeting System for Poverty Reduction survey.
He assured that the assistance will be received by the beneficiaries as scheduled despite the continuing coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic.
“We have enough funds to cover for these grants. Our workers are now processing the first transfer for this year,” Espejo said in a report.
Under the program, households with children enrolled in daycare and elementary levels will receive grants of PHP300 per child for a maximum of 10 months in a year.
Students or learners enrolled in junior high school were allotted PHP500 each while those in senior high school will get PHP700.
A health and nutrition grant of not lower than PHP750 per month covering the entire year will also be given to the beneficiaries.
Espejo reiterated that the program is not a “dole-out” as the beneficiaries need to comply with its conditions to qualify for the grant.
These are provided for Republic Act 11310, which institutionalized the 4Ps and provided for the additional subsidies, he said.
He said all eligible children should be in school, mothers should get proper pre and post-natal care, children aged five-years-old and below should have regular preventive checkups while those aged 14-year-old and below should undergo deworming.
The beneficiaries are also required to attend the monthly family development sessions in their communities, he said.
Espejo added that they have been conducting regular assessments of their database and the status of the beneficiaries to ensure that it will only cover those who are really qualified. (PNA)
