MANILA, Philippines – Officials of the United Nations World Food Program (WFP) visited the country recently to observe and document the use of Globe GCash mobile phone-based money transfer for the provision of cash assistance to Ondoy-affected communities in Binangonan, Rizal.
Natalie Vaupel, WFP senior partnership manager, said that the utilization of mobile devices for distributing cash assistance for humanitarian purposes is something that the organization is studying to do more in other countries where the WFP Cash-For-Work (CFW) program is being implemented.
“I’m very pleased to come to the Philippines and see this project myself. From the (WFP) headquarters’ point-of-view, we are looking into this project very intently to see how successful it is and the potential for this to be replicated in other countries. What we want to do is see how it (GCash) is going to work here and determine where it will work again,” she said.
GCash is the first mobile phone-based cash transfer service used for CFW in Southeast Asia to assist in the rehabilitation of communities affected by natural disasters, armed conflict and chronic hunger. For the GCash pilot project, five places were identified — Mandaluyong and Marikina in Metro Manila; and Jala-Jala, Binangonan and San Mateo in Rizal.
Some 2,000 residents in the said areas severely affected by Ondoy either participated in community projects or attended trainings in exchange for a certain amount of money intended to buy food for the family. The community projects were implemented with the help of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) and Community Family Services International (CFSI).
Binangonan Mayor Boyet Ynares also expressed his gratitude for the CFW program during a courtesy call made by the group to his office before the GCash documentation was conducted. Around 300 families in Binangonan were assisted through this program.
“Binangonan is one of the areas which suffered a lot during Ondoy. Fortunately, we were able to recuperate with the help of the private and public sectors. We are very appreciative of the assistance that everyone has extended to our constituents,” Ynares said.
Meanwhile, Vaupel said that giving cash as a form of assistance for the work to be done in post disaster situations is sometimes looked upon with mistrust and is susceptible to loss or robbery. Using the mobile device to distribute cash, she said, not only offers more safety but also allows WFP to monitor disbursements and withdrawals more effectively.
“This is something we wanted to do a while ago already. So the emergency (Ondoy) served in a way because players like Globe came on board with the willingness to help. We took that opportunity to come and try something that we wanted to do and haven’t had the time fit into our priorities to get it done. Globe is a partner that came in with the willingness and the capacity that made that happen,” Vaupel said.