DSWD seeks P6.7 B to assist El Niño-affected families

MANILA, Philippines – The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) is seeking a P6.7-billion supplemental budget to fund programs to assist some 2.5 million families who will be affected by the dry spell.

The DSWD has submitted an action plan to the Department of Budget and Management for the social protection programs to be implemented until June.

“While we are waiting for the approval of the action plan, we have provided P3 million each from our regular funds for CFW (cash-for-work program) in Regions 3, 9, 10 and 11, where the effects of the drought are now being felt,” Social Welfare Secretary Corazon Soliman said yesterday. 

Soliman said the National Household Targeting System for Poverty Reduction or Listahanan survey, which was conducted last year, identified 2,504,545 families that could be affected by the drought. To be assisted are poor families of farmers and forests and farm workers.

The DSWD will provide P10,000 in livelihood assistance per family and implement CFW for eight days a month to at least 50 percent of the target families. 

Beneficiaries will receive training, render community service utilizing their newly learned skills and earn income equivalent to 75 percent of the regional minimum wage.

Tree-planting, reforestation, coastal cleaning, dredging of waterways and canals as well as the repair of facilities damaged by natural calamities are among the activities under the CFW program.

The DSWD gave assurance that it has adequate supply of family food packs for families to be affected by the drought.