The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Field Office VII registered a total of 75,446 new Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) under Set 12.

After a rigorous process that included the submission of documents during the community assembly that started in February 2023 and targeted 90,242 potential 4Ps beneficiaries in the region, the 4Ps National Program Management Office (NPMO) approved the 75,447 (83.60%) new 4Ps beneficiaries.

The DSWD implemented the program nationwide, covering 4.4 million households. It continues to reach more poor households by replacing those who graduated from the program.

Cebu province has the highest number of new beneficiaries with 33,859 (44.87%), followed by Negros Oriental with 26,742 (35.44%), Bohol with 14,083 (18.66%), and Siquijor with 762 (1%).

Currently, there are 315,505 (7.17% to the 4.4 million target nationwide) 4Ps households in the Central Visayas region.

The new 4Ps beneficiaries will be presented during the Pagsugod 4Ps ceremonial Oath of Commitment ceremony, in which the respective local government units (LGUs) will take the lead in welcoming them into the program.

The LGU Argao conducted the first Pagsugod 4Ps ceremonial oath of commitment on April 25, 2023, which welcomed the 618 new 4Ps beneficiaries in their town.

It was followed by LGU Loay on April 28, 2023, with 176 new 4Ps beneficiaries.

DSWD-7 Regional Director Shalaine Marie Lucero attended the event in Loay and led the Oath of Commitment of the newly registered 4Ps beneficiaries.

Afterward, each new 4Ps beneficiary signed the Oath of Commitment to signify his or her duty to comply with the conditions of the program that are anchored on health, nutrition, and education.

In her inspirational message, Director Lucero encouraged the 4Ps beneficiaries to use the cash grant wisely, especially for the needs of their children’s education and their family’s health and nutrition.

She also motivated them to persevere so that they would achieve self-sufficiency by the time they graduated from the program within the 7-year timeline.

Loay Municipal Mayor Hilario Ayuban urged new 4Ps beneficiaries not to waste the opportunity to be part of the program. He further said that the entire LGU Loay will be pleased if, in the coming years, there will be teachers, engineers, doctors, or lawyers produced from the 4Ps families.

As part of the commitment of LGU Loay to the upliftment of the well-being of their poor constituents, they have started providing a free school jeep ride to students going to their respective schools. The free Jeep program includes students who are studying in Tagbilaran City.

The LGU also passed an ordinance called the “Balay Tinabangay Program” that aims to provide houses to poor families, including 4Ps families who had been living in makeshift shelters. Since the start of the implementation, the LGU Loay has already constructed more than 20 new houses with the help of private donors.

Other LGUs in the Central Visayas region will conduct their own “Pagsugod” Oath of Commitment for new 4Ps beneficiaries.

The cash grants will be given to 4Ps beneficiaries when they comply with the program’s conditions. These include school attendance of at least 85% per month for children enrolled in preschool, elementary, or high school; children aged five (5) and below to undergo preventive check-ups as mandated by the Department of Health (DOH); children enrolled in elementary to receive deworming pills twice within the school year; pregnant women must receive prenatal and postnatal care, based on DOH protocol; and parent(s) or guardian to attend the monthly Family Development Sessions (FDS).

The 4Ps is the government’s major poverty alleviation program that invests in the poor and eligible households’ health, nutrition, and education. These, and the psychosocial and educational components provided through the Family Development Session (FDS), lead the beneficiaries to have improved and sustained well-being. Republic Act 11310, or the 4Ps Act, institutionalized the FDS. The DSWD, in coordination with DepEd, DOH, and other partner national government agencies, implemented it. ###

(387) Views