By Alfonso T. Ruda
DIPOLOG CITY - Children of the beneficiaries of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino
Program (4Ps) belonging to set one or those who were enrolled at the beginning
of the implementation of the program aging 0-18 years old will be covered under
its expansion program effective 2014.
Mr. Jose Cruz, Zamboanga del Norte 4Ps provincial link,
said during the recent Kapihan sa Dipolog radio program that under National
Anti-Poverty Commission (NAC) Resolution No. 12 series of 2013, which the local
DSWD office recently received, the program will now include children beneficiaries
aged 15-18 years old to help them in their high school studies.
Secretary Corazon “Dinky” Soliman of the Department of
Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), however, said the department will start
giving the P500 cash grant to the children of 4Ps beneficiaries who are
studying in high school effective school year 2014-2015.
Cruz pointed out that the expansion program will be
implemented after another round of validation to be undertaken by DSWD to
verify if the said children are still in the custody of the program
beneficiaries.
Under the 4Ps expansion program, the child-beneficiary
who will be studying in high school will be entitled to receive a monthly
financial assistance of P500, less the health benefit earlier granted to
households who have been covered by the program for five years with no more
children enrolled in elementary.
Presently, the program provides education grants to more
than 7 million children aged 3-14 belonging to more than 3.8 million
households.
Under the approved P63-billion budget of DSWD for
Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) program for 2014, the house and the Department
of Budget and Management (DBM) have included, as part of the poverty
alleviation program of the government, children of 4Ps beneficiaries aging up
to 18 years old.
Cruz said Zamboanga del Norte has a total of 62,898
beneficiaries under set one from the municipalities of Sibuco, Baliguian,
Gutalac, Leon Postigo, Manukan, Roxas, Katipunan, Sindangan. Siayan, Jose
Dalman, Godod, and Sergio Osmeña.
Cruz clarified that they have not yet received the
guidelines from NAC for the implementation of the 4Ps expansion program. (PIA9)