MANILA, Philippines - Many beneficiaries of the government’s conditional cash transfer (CCT) program have begun to save money, encouraged by a program implemented by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) and Globe Telecommunications.
The DSWD tapped the BPI Globe BanKO, the country’s first mobile-based savings bank, to assist CCT beneficiaries in opening their first bank account in a partnership forged in May 2012.
More than a year after the program, Social Welfare Secretary Corazon Soliman said that there has been an increase in the number of CCT beneficiaries who want to open a BPI Globe BanKO savings account.
“The financial inclusion program in partnership with Globe Bridging Communities has created a big demand from the DSWD’s CCT beneficiaries for the services of BPI Globe BanKO,†Soliman said.
In just nine months, 3,603 savings accounts have been opened by DSWD CCT beneficiaries with an average increase of 79 percent in savings from their initial deposit.
The CCT provides conditional cash grants to extremely poor households but requires them to regularly send their children to school and bring them to health centers for medical check-ups.
The program to have CCT beneficiaries open their first bank account was first rolled out in the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR) where Baguio weavers and rural communities opened their first account using the Globe Bridging Communities (GBC) SIM card.
With only an initial deposit of P50, CCT beneficiaries in the Cordillera area were able to open their first bank account.
The bank accounts may be accessed using a mobile phone and does not require a maintaining balance. Accounts are bundled with life insurance and cash-in and cash-out transactions may be done from ATMS or through partner outlets such as pawnshops and local drugstores. The savings may also be converted into pre-paid load, offering CCT beneficiaries a venue for additional income through retail sales.