CRISIS AID. Social welfare personnel distribute cash assistance to a person in crisis situation in this file photo. Department of Social Welfare and Development regional director Shalaine Marie Lucero on Tuesday (Jan. 30, 2024) said the agency released a total of PHP2.4 billion under the Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situations (AICS) program in 2023. (Photo courtesy of DSWD-7)
CEBU CITY – A total of PHP2.4 billion in cash assistance were distributed to over half a million individuals in Central Visayas who are in crisis situations in 2023, a social welfare official said on Tuesday.
Shalaine Marie Lucero, regional director of the Department of Social Welfare and Development-Central Visayas, said the 500,190 individuals were given aid, under the Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situations (AICS) program, to support their families’ living expenses while recovering from unexpected crises.
“The program extends various types of assistance, like medical, burial, educational, transportation, food, and material, through cash, family food packs, or a guarantee letter,” she told Philippine News Agency.
Lucero said 9,205 individuals availed the assistance through referrals from the Malasakit Centers in public hospitals.
Other clients who availed of the assistance were walk-ins at the DSWD-Central Visayas’ Crisis Intervention Section (CIS) in Cebu City, Social Welfare and Development offices in Bohol, Negros Oriental, and Siquijor, and satellite offices in various provinces.
AICS has 1,048 offsite payouts across the region to accommodate directly the individuals referred by local government units, Lucero added. (PNA)
