FRESH START. Balik Probinsya program beneficiaries are all set to return to their province, onboard a National Housing Authority bus at the BP2 Depot in Quezon City on Thursday morning (May 5, 2022). Two families will return to Siquijor and start life anew in the province. (PNA photo by Robert Oswald P. Alfiler)
MANILA – More and more beneficiary families are given the chance to restart their lives in their respective home provinces through the government’s “Balik Probinsya Bagong Pag-Asa” (BP2) program.
After residing in Metro Manila for years, the latest beneficiaries of the program which include five families consisting of 13 individuals are set to return to Siquijor (Central Visayas), Samar, and Northern Samar (Eastern Visayas) on Thursday.
The BP2 program has just gotten better with various members of the BP2 council, including national government agencies and local government units (LGUs), renewing their commitment to helping those families and even individuals who wish to go back to their home provinces for good.
Beneficiaries were given immediate incentives prior to their scheduled departure from Manila including transportation allowance and emergency cash assistance they can use while waiting to complete the dispatch proceedings.
They went through a two-day verification and evaluation by the National Housing Authority (NHA) and the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), starting Wednesday at the BP2 Depot in Quezon City.
Upon their return, the government will also facilitate the fresh start of these individuals by providing them with short-term and long-term assistance.
Beneficiaries can likewise avail of livelihood starter kits from the Department of Trade and Industry and the Department of Labor and Employment, and poultry animals and farm equipment from the Fam Diversification Program of the Department of Agriculture.
Among the beneficiaries is Henry Gasga, who is now residing in Camarines Sur along with his family.
Gasga said they are now enjoying the Balik Probinsya benefits as promised by the government.
“Okay naman kaming mag-asawa dito sa ngayon. Mas maganda nga dito sa probinsya dahil yung hangin, fresh air. Sa araw-araw naman, maganda naman yung buhay namin dito (We are fine here with my wife now. It’s much better here in the province because the air is fresh. We are doing a good life here every day),” he said.
Gasga said they used the financial assistance from the BP2 program to start anew their own sewing business.
President Rodrigo Duterte signed Executive Order 114 on May 6, 2020, to institutionalize the BP2 program, which aims to reverse the continuing migration of the rural population to Metro Manila.
It also aims to address congestion in Metro Manila rural areas by encouraging applicants, especially informal settlers, to return to their home provinces.
Those ‘probinsyanos’ who wish to apply for the program can access it through www.balikprobinsya.nha.gov.ph, or may contact the DSWD via the email address [email protected] or call the hotline (02) 8952-0697 or (02) 8931-8101, local 513.
Applicants may also visit the BP2 Depot along Agham Road corner Quezon Avenue, Diliman Quezon City. (PNA)
