ILOILO City – Over 377,000 indigent senior citizens across Western Visayas received a total of ₱2.2 billion in social pension from the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) during the first half of 2025, following the full implementation of the increased monthly stipend under Republic Act 11916.
The social pension program, now providing ₱1,000 per month or ₱3,000 per quarter, offers crucial financial support to poor and vulnerable elderly Filipinos aged 60 and above.
The expanded monthly rate took effect in January 2024, doubling the previous amount of ₱500.
From January to June 2025, the DSWD released a total of ₱2,265,669,000 to 377,612 qualified beneficiaries in Western Visayas. Iloilo province had the highest number of recipients and fund disbursement:
* Iloilo Province – 152,729 seniors, ₱916,377,000
* Capiz – 56,265 seniors, ₱337,590,000
* Negros Occidental – 52,131 seniors, ₱312,789,000
* Aklan – 46,137 seniors, ₱276,813,000
* Antique – 35,947 seniors, ₱215,682,000
* Iloilo City – 13,666 seniors, ₱81,996,000
* Guimaras – 14,767 seniors, ₱88,602,000
* Bacolod City – 5,970 seniors, ₱35,820,000
Implemented under Republic Act No. 9994 or the Expanded Senior Citizens Act of 2010, the program prioritizes senior citizens who are frail, sickly, or disabled; without any pension; and lacking regular support from family members.
The DSWD emphasized that the expanded pension aligns with the government’s goal to uplift the quality of life of vulnerable elderly Filipinos by helping them meet basic needs such as food, medicine, and other daily essentials./PN
