MANILA, Philippines – The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) has tapped the services of Globe Telecom Inc. to help in the disbursement of part of the P21-billion conditional cash transfer (CCT) program in far-flung areas.
The DSWD, through Globe’s GCASH REMIT service, will distribute an estimated P1 billion in grants to 70 far-flung areas in Palawan, Quezon, Sorsogon, Aklan, Iloilo, Masbate, Lanao Del Norte, Albay, Aurora, Cebu, Sarangani, Sulu, Tawi-Tawi, Maguindanao, Basilan and Shariff Kabunsuan.
G-Xchange president Rizza Maniego-Eala said the new mode of distributing cash grants would spare beneficiaries from spending for costly transportation as well as long hours of travel just to claim their subsidies from payment centers mostly located in provincial capitals and major cities.
“Using the pervasiveness of our network, we are able to successfully distribute the conditional cash transfer program to families in far flung areas. We are proud to be a partner of the DSWD and LandBank in their initiative of bringing these cash grants closer to the people in a safe and secure manner with our wide network of outlets,” she said.
Maniego-Eala said they had a successful pilot run of the disbursement of CCT grants via GCASH REMIT in the towns of Balabac and Taytay in Palawan, and Burdeos in Quezon late last year.
Under the 2011 budget, President Aquino earmarked P21.2 billion for the CCT program also known as the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps).
The program aims to benefit 2.3 million households nationwide this year.
According to DSWD Secretary Corazon Soliman, this is just half of the 4.6 million poor families identified through the DSWD’s National Household Targeting System for Poverty Reduction.
The 4Ps, initiated during the Arroyo administration, is a poverty reduction strategy of the government which provides conditional cash grants to extremely poor households to improve their health, nutrition and education, particularly of children aged 0-14.
It provides P6,000 a year or P500 per month per household for health and nutrition expenses and P3,000 for one school year (10 months) or P300 a month per child for educational expenses.
Each household receives a maximum of P1,400 monthly for three children enrolled in the program. Only a maximum of three children per household is allowed, the DSWD said.