DSWD wants bigger budget for indigent seniors’ pension

MANILA, Philippines - The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) wants a bigger budget for their Social Pension for Indigent Senior Citizens program next year so that the agency could distribute a P500 monthly stipend.

The DSWD is asking a budget allocation of P7.51 billion for the program in 2016 to accommodate more poor and abandoned elderly folk who are getting no veterans or social security benefits.

“With the increased budget, the department could now serve more older persons in need,” Social Welfare Secretary Corazon Soliman said.

Aside from the social pension program, DSWD manages four residential care services located in Quezon City, Rizal, Davao City and Zamboanga City. 

These residential homes take care of older persons who are abandoned and neglected by their families.

For the P7,511,203,000 proposed budget for the Social Pension for Indigent Senior Citizens program for 2016, the DSWD targets to cover 1,182,941 indigent seniors, including those aged 60.

The DSWD last year covered only indigent seniors aged 77 years and older, due to the limited budget that the department was allocated for the program.

However, the DSWD was able to ask Congress for an increase of budget from P2.9 billion in 2014 that only covered 403,284 beneficiaries, to almost double, P5,713,199,000 in 2015.

The additional budget allowed the agency to cover more indigent seniors in 2015, or as many as 939,609, and lower the eligible age to 65  for inclusion in the monthly stipend of P500.

Senior citizens’ groups earlier lamented the older age bracket set by the DSWD for eligibility to receive the P500 monthly pension under the program.

The DSWD is pursuing the program in compliance with Republic Act 9994, or the Expanded Senior Citizens Act of 2010, which mandates that indigent senior citizens should be issued a monthly stipend of P500 to augment their daily subsistence and other medical needs.

In 2013, the social pension program only had a budget of P1.53 billion from which 255,763 senior citizens were given the P500 monthly pension. 

The DSWD will spearhead the celebration of the Elderly Filipino Week from Oct. 1 to 7 in partnership with other government agencies, local government units and non-government organizations.