DSWD readies social amelioration measures for poor families affected by Covid-19

Cebu City, Philippines—Families belonging to the vulnerable sector who are affected by the enhanced community quarantine due to the Coronavirus Disease 2109 (COVID-19) crisis will be provided social amelioration grant from the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD).

An eligible family can receive P5,000 to P8,000 for two months from the program mandated by Republic Act (RA) 11469, or the “Bayanihan to Heal as One Act.”

The Emergency Subsidy Program includes the DSWD’s provision of food and non-food items (FNFI) and financial assistance through the Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situation (AICS) as well as those provided by other agencies, provided that the benefits received by each household does not exceed the prescribed threshold per region.

The maximum subsidy per region will be determined from the region’s minimum wage levels as these are close approximations to the amount needed to buy basic food, medicine, and hygiene essentials.

It will be given to an eligible family in cash and in kind by various national government agencies. 

Livelihood Assistance Grants (LAG) will also be provided to a beneficiary-family of the Department’s Sustainable Livelihood Program (SLP) with at least one member who is a worker in the informal sector and is displaced due to the declaration of the community quarantine. The family must be in the master list endorsed by the LGU to the DSWD Field Office (FO) and must still undergo assessment by a DSWD staff.

The LAG will be given after the quarantine period has been lifted to help the families start anew.

LGUs will prepare the list of the target beneficiaries of the social amelioration measures and endorse this with the complete documentary requirements to the concerned DSWD FO for verification. 

A Social Amelioration Card (SAC) that captures the family profile will be distributed to the LGUs to enable the beneficiaries to access the assistance. 

It will also serve as a monitoring tool to avoid duplication of delivery of services. 

DSWD will use the existing list of Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) and the Unconditional Cash Transfer (UCT) Program to validate the list submitted by LGUs. 

Families under the 4Ps will also be supported with a top-up on their grants and rice subsidy to reach the maximum benefit per region. 

4Ps beneficiaries are most vulnerable to economic, social and physical shocks such as this health crisis, thus, the need to augment their existing grants to help them with their daily needs. 

The social amelioration measures will help mitigate the socio-economic impact of the COVID-19 health crisis and the enhanced community quarantine to the target beneficiaries, particularly the senior citizens, persons with disability, pregnant and lactating mothers, solo parents, overseas Filipinos in distress, indigent Indigenous Peoples, homeless citizens, and the informal economy workers.

The measures are contained in the Joint Memorandum Circular forged by DSWD, Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), Department of Agriculture (DA), Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), Department of Finance (DOF), and the Department of Budget and Management (DBM). DSWD commits to strengthen its coordination with the LGUs to provide the delivery of maagap at mapagkalingang serbisyo to the poor, vulnerable, and disadvantaged, while putting premium to the health and safety of its beneficiaries and personnel in this time of public health emergency.

This is the official statement of the Department on social amelioration and the agency urges the public not to be swayed by unscrupulous individuals who spread fake news using the official logo of the DSWD. /bmjo