BY GLENDA TAYONA
ILOILO City – Over half a million applicants in Western Visayas have registered online to avail themselves of educational assistance from the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) as of the first week of September.
According to Atty. May Rago-Castillo, DSWD’s information officer for Western Visayas, the online registration was temporarily suspended beginning Sept. 7 due to the need to process those who registered first.
Rago-Castillo noted that of the 591,744 who have registered online, cross-matching was done for 43,820 applicants; 47,924 more will be subjected to cross-matching or checking for possible duplication in the registration or those who have been earlier released with the assistance.
Of the 43,820 cross-matched, 12,065 were qualified and served, while 6,936 were not eligible because they were 4Ps beneficiaries.
Rago-Castillo added that 24,819 possible beneficiaries are up for assessment and payout but subject to the availability of funds.
DSWD has allotted P91 million for educational assistance in Western Visayas. Of this, P21.3 million was disbursed on Aug. 20, or the first Saturday of the payout; P22.7 million on Aug. 27; and P32.6 million on Sept. 3, for a total of P76,561,000.
The remaining fund is around P14 million. DSWD-6 has four remaining Saturdays in September to carry on with the payouts with the help of local government units.
“As long as there is still fund, we will continue to release. We will request for additional fund from the national office for the rest if there is no more budget,” said Rago-Castillo.
The educational assistance under DSWD’s Assistance for Individuals in Crisis Situation (AICS) has already served a total of 27,561,000 students.
Iloilo province, including Iloilo City, has the most number of beneficiaries served at 9,135 with a total disbursement of P27.3 million; followed by Negros Occidental, including Bacolod City, with 5,335 (P15.9 million); Capiz with 3,762 (P9.8 million); Aklan with 3,679 (P9.5 million); Antique with 3,237 (P8.8 million); and Guimaras with 2,132 (P5 million).
The educational assistance is intended for students in crisis enrolled this school year, including breadwinners; working students; children of unemployed parents; solo parents; overseas Filipino workers in distress; those with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV); orphaned, abandoned or staying with their relatives; abused or displaced children; and victims of human-induced or natural calamities.
Qualified beneficiaries enrolled in elementary grades will receive P1,000; secondary students – P2,000; senior high school students – P3,000; and college/vocational students – P4,000.
The assistance is limited to three children per family./PN
