The Disaster Response Management Division of the Department of Social Welfare and Development Field Office 7 facilitated the distribution of Emergency Cash Transfer (ECT) to 113 fire-affected households from three (3) barangays of Cebu City on July 13, 2023.
Of the total households, 55 are from Brgy. Mambaling, 48, from Brgy. Sapangdaku, and 10 from Brgy. Guadalupe. These barangays were placed under a state of calamity by virtue of a resolution considering the degree and impact of the damage.
The amount given to each family is determined by the classification of house damage, with those declared totally damaged receiving 75% of the regional wage rate (PHP 326.00) for 62 days and those declared partially damaged receiving the same amount for 31 days only.
Assistance reached a total of PHP 2,203,108.00. This consists of PHP 1.9 million for 95 households whose houses were declared Totally Damaged and PHP 181.9 thousand for 18 partially damaged households.
Prior to the implementation of ECT, DSWD Field Office 7 has already extended a total of PHP 2 million in cash assistance through the Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situation program and PHP 881 thousand worth of food and non-food items (FNFIs) to the affected families.
LGU Cebu City has provided a total of PHP 5.6 million, consisting of FNFIs and shelter assistance.
DSWD Field Office VII provided the ECT following the request of Cebu City South District Congressman Eduardo R. Rama in partnership with LGU Cebu City. Results of a further assessment of the affected families showed that they barely surpassed the impact of losing their homes and almost all of their belongings a few months after the incidents happened.
The cash assistance would augment the families’ basic needs, including medicine, clothing, hospitalization, transportation, educational support, and food items not included in the DSWD family food pack.
It also allows the families to initiate and take responsibility for its development, thus increasing their decision-making capability.
The ECT is an adaptive strategy for bridging the gap between immediate disaster relief, humanitarian response, and early recovery support in disasters and emergencies by providing unconditional cash assistance to the affected population.
Aside from ECT, LGU Cebu City is also the Field Office’s a partner in implementing the Risk Resiliency Program Cash-for-Project “Gubat sa Baha: Limpyo ug Bantay sa Sapa” for beneficiaries from barangays Basak Pardo and Cogon Pardo.
The project aims to clean, restore, and establish a pool of deputized agents that will enforce local ordinances for environment protection as well as supports its future development in order to improve the safety, sanitation, and rehabilitation of select Cebu City rivers and creeks with the goal of having a risk-resilient community. ###
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