“Lisod kaayo, dili pareho ang kitaon namo kada adlaw, usahay kusog, usahay lunod sad puhonan sa pagpaninda og canton ug barbecue. Malibre man ang among sud-an, pero og dili mahurot wa sad kita (It is tough. Our daily sales vary. Sometimes our canton and barbeque sell like hotcakes. And there are also times when our sales are low. We get our daily consumption from our sales, and sometimes we have to top-up our capital),” recounts Narlie Ochea, as she talks about her experience before she became a beneficiary to the Sustainable Livelihood Program (SLP).

Narlie is a 4Ps beneficiary and a single parent from Mandaue City. Narlie shared that before she became SLP’s beneficiary, she planned to take up housekeeping skills training at TESDA; to gain housekeeping skills, she wanted to have a regular job to sustain her family.

“Atong 2015, gi-invite ko sa City Link namo nga moapil sa training sa housekeeping sa SLP, kay ang plano man nako sa TESDA man unta ko mo train. Pag OJT na nako nag ampo gyud ko nga makasulod na gyud sa hotel kung asa ko nag OJT, naswertehan, og hantud karon nia ko diri sa hotel nag trabaho, maski atong pandemic, nihinay man pero dia lang ghapon ko ga sigeg duty (In 2015, our City Link invited me to attend the housekeeping training of SLP because I planned to train at TESDA. When I had my OJT at a hotel, I really prayed that I could work in the same hotel. I got lucky and I now work here. Even though the operation slowed down due to the pandemic, I still reported to duty),” said Narlie.

Ten years is a long and laborious process of the program; it faces a lot of challenging moments in the implementation, from typhoons to health risks such as the COVID-19 Pandemic. The Sustainable Livelihood Program plays a vital role in the Sulong recovery program, distributing the Livelihood Assistance Grant (LAG) to those small entrepreneurs whose livelihood was affected by the lockdown.

“Usa kos nahimong beneficiary sa LAG, dako gyud tog natabang namo panahon sa pandemya tungod kay kabalik kog barog human nahurot akong puhonan sa among panginahanglanon panahon sa lockdown (I am one of the LAG beneficiaries. The fund helped us get back to business after our capital was consumed for our needs during lockdown),” related Pablo Paspia, LAG beneficiary of Barili, Cebu.

Pablo has been selling porridge for 30 years. It made his five children finish school. “Dako kaayo og impact ang paghunong nako ug tinda tungod sa lockdown, kay mao ra kini ang panginabuhian nga akong na andan (When I stopped selling porridge due to lockdown, it has affected us because it has been our only source of income).” He added that the pandemic tested the family’s survival instinct, and the loss of his livelihood was his most dreaded moment.

For Narlie and Pablo, the program has touched their lives and has created an impact on their families.

The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) through Sustainable Livelihood Program (SLP) has served the marginalized sectors for a decade. It gives hope to families venturing into their small businesses, providing skills, and enhancing abilities for those who want to land a better job for a better life.

To date, the Sustainable Livelihood Program (SLP) has served 19,281 households across the region, the program disbursed a total amount of Php 280,617,792.00; Php 66,600,000.00 in Bohol, Php 142,592,792.00 in Cebu, Php 65,770,000.00 in Negros Oriental, and Php 5,655,000.00 in Siquijor. ###

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