“Losing my mother was the saddest moment of my life. I am forever grateful to have her as my mother,” posted Clavel Campugan on her Facebook account during her mother’s 56th birthday. The young Campugan expressed that it is very hard for her and her siblings to accept that their mother now rests in heaven and that there is no single day that they would not miss her.

For them, Ofelia Campugan is like a northern star that guides them in the proper direction.

The Campugan Family poses after Pamela’s (second from right) graduation last March 15. With her (from left to right) are Haneleth, Kimberly and Clodualdo to witness the momentous event.

The Campugan family of barangay Poblacion, Cordova, Cebu finished as second runner-up in the 2018 Huwarang Pantawid Pamilya National Search during the Pantawid Pamilya National Family Day held in SM North EDSA Skydome in Quezon City on October 14, 2018.

The family went to Quezon City to receive the award except Ofelia who was advised by the doctor to rest.

It was Ofelia’s can-do attitude and willingness that made their family famous for talent contests in their town. She joins “balak” contest and other contests in their town. Her children have also been joining contests such as quiz bowl, declamation, song and dance, beauty pageant, poetry, writing and sports competition.

Once you witness them dance, sing, deliver poems, you cannot help yourself but laugh and be amazed by their God-given talent.

With all the struggles and challenges that have to face, they proved that perseverance, hard work, faith and love will conquer them all.

More than one month after they received their national recognition, Ofelia succumbed to death in the presence of her husband and children.

“Sakit man, padayon lang gihapon ug amo nalang dawaton (Though it is painful but we have to move on and just accept it), said Clodualdo in dialect.

The children would always recall how their mother would find ways just to earn money to help their father provide their daily needs.

“Tungod ni sa akong mga ginikanan, sa ilang sakripisyo ug kakugi mao nga naka-graduate ko, kami manag igsoon (It is because of my parents, their sacrifices and hardwork I was able to graduate and my siblings),” said Pamela Campugan who graduated last March 15, 2019 with the degree of Bachelor in Elementary Education from Cordova Public College.

Pamela said that her mother is her greatest inspiration.

Clofel Mae will also graduate in Grade 12 this coming April 5, 2019 and she plans to take an engineering course in college and Haneleth, the youngest child, will finish Grade 10 next month. Both are monitored children under the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps).

The eldest child, Kimberly still works as a Production Planning and Inventory Control staff at the Mactan Export Processing Zone Authority (MEPZA) in Lapu-Lapu City. Clavel is currently working in ToyoFlex as a Human Resource staff and Jesper just got hired as an office staff in Cordova Cooperative.

The Campugan family had given us so much inspiration. Indeed, the family’s story of trials and triumphs will always remain in our hearts. Their loss is after all, the beginning of a new journey. They have lost their northern star but they have already secured each one of them a burning torch within their hearts.

They may have lost a cast in their theatrical play but for them as they positively and always do – the show must go on.

Ofelia left all of us with a lesson that despite all the odds in life, one must be strong and must stay faithful to God. For now, the Campugan lives with the legacy of their mother. ###

To fast track in receiving their cash grants, the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Field Office VII and the Landbank of the Philippines (LBP) issued cash cards to Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) partner-beneficiaries.

A Pantawid Pamilya partner-beneficiary in Cebu City receives her ATM card from the Landbank of the Philippines personnel.

These cash cards were issued by LBP to the 154,121 4Ps partner-beneficiaries who had no cash cards yet and previously got their cash grant through over-the-counter (OTC) transactions or offsite payment.

The cash grants are usually disbursed to beneficiaries through LBP and they can claim their cash grant through a cash card or through OTC. In far-flung areas, conduit banks who are mostly rural and cooperative banks accredited by LBP are tapped in OTC payout.

“Mas madali na kini sa pagkuha sa among cash grant ikompara sa OTC kay sa una man gud magsayu mi lakaw gikan sa among balay padung sa lugar sa payoutan karun pwede na kami maka-adto sa banko miskin unsa nga oras (This would be much convenient in receiving our cash grant compared to the OTC because before we would leave the house early in going to the payout site but now we can go to the bank any time we want),” said Mary Joy Baflor of Brgy. Adlaon, Cebu City.

All Mary Joy’s children are monitored under 4Ps who are studying in Grade 5, Grade 4 and the youngest child is enrolled in an Early Childhood Care and Development center.

“Nakatabang gyud ang cash grant sa Pantawid sa pagpaeskwela sa mga bata labi na nga dili paigo ang kita sa akong bana gikan sa pag-uma (The cash grant of Pantawid helps in the education of our children especially that the income of my husband from farming is not enough),” added Mary Joy.

To augment their food consumption, Mary Joy also shared that they maintain a vegetable garden in their house.

The releasing of cash cards in four provinces of region 7 has started on February 16, 2019 and is targeted to finish by the end of April 2019.

The cash cards can be used in any Land Bank ATM outlets without additional charge or in any bank with additional charges. ###

To further strengthen the election-related and active citizenship campaign of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD)-7 to its Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) beneficiaries, a series of Voters’ Education and discussion of election info-briefer have been conducted since February 26, 2019.

Kerwin Macopia, Pantawid Information Officer, discusses further the election info-briefer to the Pantawid Partner beneficiaries in Mandaue City.

This effort aims to provide beneficiaries with information that will importantly guide them in protecting themselves and the program from possible exploits during elections. In the activity, Pantawid partner-beneficiaries were constantly encouraged to exercise their right to suffrage and protect its secrecy and sanctity amid the spread of fake news on the program implementation and the approaching elections.

Pantawid Information Officer Kerwin Macopia who led the discussion and distribution of the election info-briefer to Pantawid partner-beneficiaries in Mandaue, Lapu-lapu and Cebu City had emphasized one of the misconceptions of the beneficiaries and other people about the program and elections.

“Wala’y laing makapatangtang ninyo sa programa kon dili ang inyo lamang dili pagsunod sa mga kondisyon niini ug kung wala na moy mga estudyante nga makarga sa programa (You can only be removed from the program if you fail to comply with the set conditions of the program or if you no longer have eligible children for monitoring),” emphasized Macopia.

The beneficiaries are also encouraged to report any anomalies or suspicious activities related to Pantawid Pamilya and elections in their area to the DSWD or City/Municipal Link nearest to them.

The 4Ps is a program of the national government that invests in the health and education of poor households primarily of children aged 18 and below. It provides cash grants to compliant household beneficiaries with health grant worth Php 500 and educational grants worth Php 300 and Php 500 for each children studying in elementary and high school. Apart from that, the beneficiaries are also entitled with a rice subsidy in the form of cash amounting to Php 600. ###

Hip-hop, R&B and K-POP those are just few of the music genres that a simple girl named Abbie expresses her feelings toward her friends, neighbors and loved ones.

The rhythm of the music symbolizes the different high and low points in her life and the way she dances to the different music signifies her flexibility to adapt with the different situations in life.

For Abbie Sumagang, dancing is her way of coping from stress and pressure which a typical teenager faces nowadays. She also does this as a medium of promoting an active lifestyle and camaraderie among the youth may it be in school or in her neighborhood. Abbie said “I dance often not only to develop my talent and be known for it but through dance I gained new friends.”

Abbie is currently a grade 8 student at Campalanas National High School.

“Para nako ang pagsayaw kay usa ka paagi aron ma-express imong self (For me dance is one way of expressing one’s self),” Abbie said in mixed English and dialect.

Ever since she was young, Abbie participated in many school activities and even performed during their town fiesta celebrations.

According to her, she likes to join to a lot of academic and extracurricular activities in school and in the community because it enhances her inter-personal skills.

Abbie is the youngest among the four children of Abner and Helen Sumagang from Sitio Balogo, Barangay Campalanas, Lazi, Siquijor.

Abbie’s residence is the end sitio of their barangay, about 18 kilometers from the town hall. She recalls that every day she walks the rough hills road with her schoolmates from their house to her school that is why she wakes up early in the morning and helps her parents prepare her things.

Abbie finished elementary as the Class Valedictorian and she continues to be on top of her class even up to this day.

Athlete and Volunteer

Aside from her academic achievements, Abbie has also put a name for herself in sports during intramurals as she was among the school’s representatives in the chess competition during the District Level Competition.

An active member of the Girl Scout of the Philippines (GSP), Abbie wants to become an accountant someday. “I want to become an accountant, because it deals more on mathematics, which I love especially problem solving. I always love helping my classmates on problem solving,” explains Abbie.

She has been very helpful to her classmates and is not selfish to share her knowledge in Mathematics and Science. In fact, she has won various awards in the Mathematics Teachers Association of the Philippines (MTAP) Math challenge both in the district and division levels.

She has been an active volunteer in their barangay and participated in some community activities such as clean-up drive and tree planting.

One of her major extra-curricular involvements is in the Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council. She shares that her involvement motivated her to assist in times of emergency situations. Abbie tells that her place is identified to be a hazard prone area. Furthermore, she said the council is the prime mover in times of school disaster drills, accidents during intramurals and in the information campaign on disaster preparedness at school.

Abbie says “Ang kapobrehon dili kini pagalantawon isip usa ka babag sa pagkab-ot sa mga pangandoy apan usa kini kahagit sa atong kinabuhi (Poverty should be viewed not as a hindrance in achieving one’s goal but rather as a challenge in life).”

She never falters to strive to achieve her dreams because she considers every difficult circumstance as a challenge to herself rather than a reason to surrender.

Family

She is grateful for her family that despite of their simple living, they have maintained a healthy relationship. She recalls her parent’s conviction that “bisan makaagi mi og kalisud, problema ug mga pagsulay ang panaghiusa isip usa ka pamilya gayud ang matigbabaw (Despite the hardships, problems and challenges, solidarity among the family members should rise above all).”

Vina, Abbie’s elder sister, expresses that she considered Abbie an achiever. “We are proud of her because not only she achieves her aspiration as a student, she also performs her household chores well.” Vina added that Abbie never forgets to do her household chores before and after school.

As a form of family bonding, the Sumagang family maintains a small backyard garden at home that also serves as their source of food supply and income. They family helps their neighbors by sharing them vegetables and corn cobs every time they harvest.

Abner, Abbie’s father, is a carpenter and at times, works at their farm for additional income. Her Mother Helen, who hails from Pampanga, is a simple housewife and maintains the family backyard garden.

The couple often wondered how they were able to send all their children to school given their limited income. Before Abner went to carpentry, he used to be a fisherman and they struggled a lot financially before they became a Pantawid Pamilya partner-beneficiary.

“Lisud ang trabaho sa usa ka mananagat kay kung bati ang panahon o adunay bagyo dili makapangisda si Papa (A fisherman’s work is difficult because if the weather is bad and if there is a typhoon, my father cannot work),” Abbie recounts.

When Helen decided to work in Manila as a housekeeper in one of her relatives in order to sustain the needs of the family, Abner had to assume both roles as a father and mother.

Abbie exclaimed “Si Papa ang nibuhat sa mga trabahuon nga gitrabaho pud ni Mama sama sa pagluto, paglaba ug uban pa (My father had to do the household chores as my mother did like cooking, washing laundry among others).”

However, the family did not lose hope and continued to strive for the betterment of their family coupled by prayers.

When they become Pantawid Pamilya partner-beneficiary, Helen came home to take care of their children and on the other hand Abner was also able to find a better job that would augment their family needs.

Abbie Sumagang (leftmost) together with other Exemplary Pantawid Pamilya Children from Central Visayas Ma. Janica Delusa, Jhefrell Casido and Dylene Jee Polea during the 2018 Araw ng Kabataan at the SM North EDSA Skydome.

It was shared by Helen that the program did not only help them financially but it has also strengthened their family relationship with the aid of the Family Development Session (FDS) where they learned to be more responsible and mature in handling their children and family as a whole. They are now aware of the different internal and external resources in the community giving them easier access in finding better solutions to address the needs of their family.

At a very a young age, through the guidance of her parents, Abbie was able to balance her personal, family and social life in school, church and community. She hopes that one day, all the children in their community will be able to finish their education and reach their dreams in life.

She continues to inspire other people to help others in the simplest way they can. She and her family upholds to the mantra “Kapag may itinanim may aanihin (What you sow, so shall you reap).”

With this, she created her own meaning of the acronym 4Ps. One has to have Patience, Persistence coupled with Passion in everything he/she does to achieve Perfection.

Life is full of happiness and tears. And for Abbie, whatever comes her way, she just have accept it, be strong and have faith.

There are many kinds of music out there and so are life’s surprises, but with her values, experiences, and with the people who love and support her, Abbie believes that she can dance to the rhythm of life. ###

The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Field Office VII reminds Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program or 4Ps partner-beneficiaries to be vigilant and be active citizens as the mid-term election activities begin.

“Our program partner-beneficiaries are free to decide, choose and express their beliefs and rights on issues concerning their lives,” said OIC DSWD Regional Director Rebecca P. Geamala.

“They are encouraged to exercise their right to vote and protect its secrecy and sanctity as the future of the community and the nation depends on this,” added Geamala.

Director Geamala further said that 4Ps beneficiaries are empowered individuals and are aware of their rights as citizens and they are free to choose someone whom they believe epitomizes their principles.

Pantawid Pamilya continues to implement its election-related campaign which aims to promote and strengthen active citizenry. Beneficiaries’ empowerment are further fortified through the monthly Family Development Session (FDS) with the good governance and active citizenship module and information campaign on election related matters.

“We would also like to clarify that DSWD programs and services are not directly or indirectly coursed through local officials or their offices,” said Geamala.

She appeals to everyone to refrain from spreading false information that they can, for instance, remove or de-list from the 4Ps or from any other DSWD programs and services if one would not vote for them,” Geamala said.

“Again, it is only the DSWD that can recommend additional beneficiaries to the program based on the Listahanan database and as of now we do not have expansion of the program. There is no additional 4Ps beneficiaries since the moratorium issued in 2016 has not been lifted yet. And a 4Ps household can only be removed from the program if it does not comply with the program conditions or does not have children eligible for monitoring,” she added.

Moreover, DSWD personnel like the City and Municipal Links who are covered by the Civil Service rules are not allowed to campaign or influence 4Ps beneficiaries who they should vote or support during the election.

DSWD Secretary Rolando Joselito Bautista also instructed for the conduct of payouts and other DSWD activities in neutral grounds and venue to avoid political campaigning during the DSWD activities in partnership with the Armed Forces of the Philippines (PNP), Philippine National Police (PNP) and Civil Society Organizations (CSOs).

The 4P’s is a program of the national government that invests in the health and education of poor households primarily of children aged 18 and below. It provides cash grants to compliant household beneficiaries with health grant worth Php 500 and educational grants worth Php 300 and Php 500.00 each to the children studying in elementary and high school, respectively. The beneficiaries also receive a rice subsidy in the form of cash amounting to Php 600.00. ###

The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Field Office VII has resolved 6,342 complaints out of the 6,769 cases received in 2018 through the Grievance Redress System (GRS) of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program or 4Ps.

The remaining 427 cases are still ongoing until this year.

Pantawid Pamilya regional grievance officer Joan Florabell Felicio (second from left) together with other grievance officers interview a household during a home visit.

GRS is a mechanism, or set of procedures and processes, to be used as a means to address and resolve issues and complaints related to project implementation of 4Ps. It is intended to provide a venue for beneficiaries and the public at large to air their concerns, complaints and suggestions to improve the program.

The types of grievances received in 2018 with the corresponding number are the following; payment related issues (2,772), request for social services (1,738), cash card related issues (933), others (737), misbehavior of beneficiary (457), ineligibility (110), grievance on staff performance (9), IP and GAD related issues (7) and appeal for reinstatement (6).

“Out of the 6,769 total cases received, we were able to get a resolution rate of 93.69% and the 6.84% of ongoing cases are within the timeline. The high number of ongoing case was in payment related issues which requires submission of pertinent documents by the complainants such as certificate of school enrollment to facilitate the updating of the facility,” said regional grievance officer Joan Florabell Felicio.

“Our grievance officers in the field have been conducting different activities in order to lessen the number of grievances like the installation of GRS help desk during Pantawid Pamilya payout wherein our partner-beneficiaries could raise their concerns and be given immediate feedback by the workers. We conduct random home visits and attend in the FDS to provide brief re-orientation on the program guidelines with emphasis on proper utilization of cash grants and sanctions for the misuse of grants,” Felicio added.

Felicio said that the beneficiaries welcomed them during the conduct of random home visit because their queries have been answered and clarified and they hope that the program will continue to support to their children’s education.

She added that the DSWD will continue to intensify the random home visits in different areas and conduct advocacy efforts through media guestings, public orientations and information caravan to explain the program and respond to the various issues.

Felicio also encourages the public to send their reports regarding any malpractice related to 4Ps implementation through their City and Municipal Links or to the regional office.

The public can also email DSWD through 4psreklamo@gmail.com or text their complaints through the hotline number 09189122813 with the following text format DSWD<space>4Ps<space>Name of Beneficiary<space>Message (Example: DSWD 4Ps Juana dela Cruz kulang ang natanggap na payout sa Pardo, Cebu City). ###

The Philippines is lived with a culturally diverse community where various group of people embrace different customs and traditions, but are all bearers of the national brand “Mga Pilipino/Pinoy.” This includes the indigenous people communities who have unique cultural identities that significantly need preservation and protection and have been labeled as marginalized due to lack or limited access to education, health facilities, and other economic opportunities. Also, they are usually subjected to discrimination. Concerning to this, the Department of Social Welfare and Development has reached out the indigenous peoples and has helped them improve their level of well-being through access to internal and external resources and social services.

Completing the three meals everyday has been difficult to most of the members of the Bukidnon Tribe as most of them are only laborers of the haciendas, earning limited pay practically inadequate for their daily sustenance. This is also one of the factors why only a few children in the Bukidnon Tribe of Bgry. Kabulakan Sta. Catalina, Negros Oriental were able to go to school.

Community Facilitator, Jeh Beh G. Katipunan conducts a spot check to Pantawid children of Tribu Bukidnon in The Kabulakan Elementary School to ensure that set conditionalities mandated by the Pantawid program are followed.

With the goal to protect, preserve and develop traditional indigenous skills and cultures, the DSWD has seen education as a significant step or foundation in empowering indigenous people to participate more in their communities. Recognizing the crucial role of education in people empowerment, the Department improved its provision of social services by bringing this to the communities where indigenous peoples live.

“Before, we could barely eat thrice a day because most of the people from the tribe are only laborers of haciendas. That is why, we are happy that there is now the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP) who has supported us and organized our tribe. We are also grateful of the DSWD’s Modified Conditional Cash Transfer (MCCT) and Pantawid program for making us capable of sending our children to school,” Bukidnon Tribe Chieftain Dionesio Valor recounted.

Tribu Bukidnon IP Community has now access to public schools in the vicinity. There are 2 Day Care Centers accredited under the Municipal Social Welfare and Development Office in the Municipality of Santa Catalina, which are the Kabulakan Day Care Center and the Mansanagan Day Care Center. The Kabulakan Elementary School serves their primary students while Obat High School for the Junior and Senior High School students.

“Previously, only a few children in our tribe are sent to school, but now almost all of the children of the tribe are enjoying the privilege to be in school. We are hopeful that this very few number of children (non-Pantawid) who are not yet in school will soon be granted a chance to education with the convergence of the efforts of the DSWD and other agencies,” Chieftain Donision Valor further said.

As of December 2018, there is zero record of IP eligible children missing classes and non-compliant in school, while there are no reports raised on students enrolled to Alternative Learning System (ALS) and case managed constantly skipping classes or non-compliant. According to the report of the Cluster Compliance Verification Officer Marline Gutang, there is 100% compliance of MCCT monitored children in Day Care Centers and in Elementary School as of the school year 2017.

The Local Government Unit of Sta. Catalina, Commission on Higher Education, Tamayo Foundation and the NCIP have also been cooperative in empowering the people of Bukidnon Tribe through provision of Scholarship Grants for the Tertiary Education of selected children of the Tribe.

Tribu Bukidnon of Sta. Catalina, Negros Oriental performs their traditional Binanog Dance, a dance which is an imitation of the movement of the “Banog” or hawk during the 2018 Indigenous Peoples Summit.

“The most that we are trying our best to sustain are these scholarship grants (from different agencies/NGOs) and the regular attendance of our children in school, because we believe that soon when these children will graduate, they will be capable of offering a great help and support to our tribe especially when they’ll be able to land a good job,” Tribe Chieftain Valor said.

Among the other economic opportunities provided to the indigenous peoples are the health and sustainable livelihood services that currently benefit the indigenous people of Sta. Catalina.

There has been improved access to preventive health care services and facilities in Kabulakan Health Center among pregnant women and children 0-5 years of age and there is also zero record of IP Eligible Pantawid households unable to avail the key health services for the periods one to four of 2018.

These indigenous people of Sta. Catalina, Negros Oriental have also shown a significant involvement in establishing sustainable livelihoods in their community through the support of different NGAs, LGUs and NGOs.   Among the livelihoods sustained by the group are Swine Production, Banana Plantation of Brgy. Manasanagan, Mini Sari-sari Store and Carabao Dispersal Livelihood Project.

Bukidnon Tribe are also actively involved in different People’s Organization/Association like Katribu Association, Manasanagan Water Association, Farmers Association, Sugar Planters, Kabulakan Water System Association, Women’s Association, Farmer’s Association and Planter’s Association that engage them in social, cultural and educational activities and help them continuously organize and mobilize their community for its progress and promotion.

Chieftain Valor also narrated that other members in their tribes have used to feel hopeless and were confused on how they should deal with their financial and family difficulties wherein most of them had just resorted to drinking and would eventually throw tantrums.

“But currently, there are no more tribe members who would resort to drinking because with the aid of the resources and opportunities given to them by the different government agencies, they have already learned how to strive and feed their families. Family problems that used to cause burden to some wives and husbands have been curtailed too and we are hopeful that this will be sustained,” the Chieftain amusingly recounted.

Having received social interventions from the DSWD and its partner stakeholders that aim to continuously establish an inclusive community that opens opportunities to all, Chieftain Dionesio Valor and his Tribe have seen a silver lining not just for their tribe but to all Indigenous People groups in the community.

Active members of DSWD-7’s Modified Conditional Cash Transfer (MCCT) program of Brgy. Kabulakan, pose for a souvenir photo during the celebration of 2018 Indigenous People (IP) Day at the Wildlife Sanctuary of Sta. Catalina, Negros Oriental.

“We are indeed grateful. Today we already have mini-stores for our livelihood, we were helped with our backyard garden, we are also engaged in handicrafts made of drift woods and are well supported with materials needed for such handicrafts. As of now, we could say that we are no longer struggling in our daily living. When talking about income, we already have small or even big income-generating livelihoods. It also helped other people in the tribe because they would no longer go to the downtown to buy goods because there are already small merchandising stores in the vicinity that could provide our needs which also helped the group owners of our store to collect bigger funds/profit,” Chieftain Valor expressed.

With the complete adherence of Bukidnon Tribe to the program conditions and their excellent performance in developing their communities through and in partnership with the different stakeholders of the program they are chosen as one of the top two Model Indigenous People Communities during the Indigenous People’s Summit conducted on November 28-29, 2018. The other Model IP Community is the Tribu Aeta of Mabinay, Negros Oriental. ###

The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Field Office VII has disbursed 4.2 billion for the implementation of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program or 4Ps.

Now on its 10th year of implementation, 4Ps continues to invest in the health and education of poor and vulnerable households to break the intergenerational cycle of poverty in the country.

As of December, 4Ps is being implemented in the 132 Local Government Units (LGUs) in the 4 provinces in Central Visayas region. A total of 277,900 are active household-beneficiaries. Of the 277,900 active household-beneficiaries, 250,617 are covered by the regular Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) program while 27,283 are covered by the Modified Conditional Cash Transfer (MCCT).

The MCCT includes beneficiaries who are not covered by the regular CCT, such as homeless street families, victims of natural and man-made disasters who are rendered homeless and with no means of livelihood, and Indigenous People in geographically isolated and disadvantaged areas (GIDA).

4Ps provides cash grants to compliant household-beneficiaries with health grant worth Php 500.00 and educational grants worth Php 300.00 and Php 500.00 each to the children studying in elementary and high school, respectively. A rice subsidy in the form of cash amounting to Php 600.00 to the household-beneficiaries is also included.

Household-beneficiaries need to comply the following conditions in order to receive the full amount of the cash grants; school attendance of at least 85% per month for children enrolled in the elementary or high school. Children aged 5 and below would need to undergo preventive check-up as mandated by the Department of Health (DOH) and children enrolled in the elementary must receive deworming pills twice within the school year. Also, Pregnant women must receive pre and post-natal care based on DOH protocol.

Lastly, parent/s or guardians are required to attend the monthly Family Development Session (FDS).

Compliance rate of Pantawid Pamilya beneficiaries in education is about 96.51%, 98.91% in health and 95.43% in FDS. The regional average compliance rate is higher than the national average compliance rate which is 96.95% compared to 95.78%.

The cash grants are disbursed to beneficiaries through the Land Bank of the Philippines (LBP) and they can claim their money through a cash card or through over-the-counter (OTC).

In far-flung area, conduit banks who are mostly rural and cooperative banks accredited by LBP are tapped in OTC payout. ###