The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) in Central Visayas conducts information sharing in Lazi, Siquijor, about the programs and services of the Department with the town’s barangay or community frontline workers.

Daycare workers, gender and development officers, nutrition scholars, and DSWD beneficiaries of the 4Ps and Sustainable Livelihood Program attended the caravan initiated by the Social Marketing Section on July 12, 2024, at the municipal covered court.

Through the discussion and distribution of information materials, the SMS hopes to increase the awareness of the community about the agency, gather support from the participants to become potential influencers, and eventually become advocates.

The resource persons tackled the overview of the core programs of DSWD – 4Ps, KALAHI-CIDSS, Sustainable Livelihood Program, Social Pension, Centenarian, and the Supplementary Feeding Program from which the town of Lazi continues to benefit.

They also briefly presented the five Centers and Residential Care Facilities.

Addressing his constituents, Lazi Municipal Mayor Phil Moore D. Largo encouraged them to become champions and advocates of DSWD in their communities. “I hope that with your participation in this activity, you will know the different programs and services that DSWD has in our community, and I hope you can bring information to your respective communities,” the mayor said.

Participants also listened to an overview of the Department’s disaster response programs and services, such as the provision of food and non-food items, the establishment of camps, the deployment of a mobile command center that will assist in the profiling of affected populations, and the prepositioning of relief goods in strategic areas. This is beneficial for the participants to understand the roles of the agency, their local government unit, and the affected communities in times of disaster.

For programs that respond to people in crisis, Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situations (AICS) and the newly introduced program called Ayuda sa Kapos Ang kita Program (AKAP) were also discussed, especially on the types of assistance, how to avail of these, what are the documentary requirements needed, and where to go should they need it.

On the other hand, the Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking Violence Against Women and Children (IACAT-VAWC) in Region 7 also joined the activity by promoting its advocacies against trafficking by identifying a red flag and reporting to appropriate offices.

DSWD continues to support the whole-of-nation approach to eliminating and preventing these human rights violations from increasing in the community by ensuring that assistance can be availed of for the victims through the Recovery and Reintegration Program for Trafficked Persons (RRPTP) and by promoting the advocacy of the SHIELD Against Child Labor Program. Both focal persons of these DSWD programs were present in the caravan.

The Regional Alternative for Child Care Office (RACCO) 7 under the newly created National Authority for Child Care (NACC) also joined the caravan to share its programs and services, and the RA 11642, the Domestic Administrative Adoption and Alternative Child Care Act.

The caravan of information sharing in Lazi, Siquijor, is one of the many efforts of the Department to ensure that communities get the correct information and help them make informed decisions. ###

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