The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), together with its partner regional and provincial agencies, recently held a dialogue with beneficiaries of different programs of the DSWD in Los Baños town in Laguna Province. Majority of said beneficiaries are parent leaders of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program.
Partner agencies in attendance include the Department of Education, Department of Interior and Local Government, Department of Health, PhilHealth, National Anti-Poverty Commission, National Commission on Indigenous Peoples, Department of Environment and Natural Resources, Commission on Population, and Department of Labor and Employment both at the regional and Laguna provincial levels.
The said agencies are members of the Regional Advisory Committee (RAC) and the Provincial Advisory Committee (PAC) for the implementation of the Pantawid Pamilya program. These committees regularly convene to oversee the program implementation and find opportunities to converge services to help improve the living condition of beneficiaries.
The said dialogue, which was done for the first time in the Province of Laguna, is a mechanism for the RAC and the PAC to listen to the voice of the beneficiaries not only in terms of their gains in the program but as well as issues and concerns they experienced in its implementation.
Grateful for the programs and services
In the dialogue, beneficiaries raised how they are being helped by the different agencies of the government, particularly the opportunities provided to them when they became beneficiaries of the Pantawid Pamilya program.
“Maraming salamat po sa lahat ng bumubuo ng programa dahil napakalaking tulong po sa katulad namin ang mga programa n’yo,” shared 26-year-old Albert Fernandez, a Pantawid Pamilya beneficiary and a scholar of the Expanded Student Grants-in-Aid Program for Poverty Alleviation (E-SGPPA) of the Commission on Higher Education.
According to Fernandez, at his age, he no longer thought he’ll be able to go to college.
“Wala na talaga sa isip ko na makakapagkolehiyo pa ako. Pero dahil sa oportunidad na ibinigay ninyo, nasa kolehiyo na ako at may pagkakataon nang matulungan ang aking pamilya,” shared Fernandez.
Mary Grace Licayu, 40, a Pantawid Pamilya beneficiary, shared that besides being thankful to the program, beneficiaries must also do something to help their respective families.
“Maswerte tayo dahil napabilang tayo sa ganitong programa pero ‘wag tayong dito na lang umasa. Habang andito pa ang programa, matuto tayong tumayo sa sarili nating mga paa at pahalagahan ang lahat ng itinuturo sa atin ng programa lalo na sa mga Family Development Sessions,” Licayu shared.
She added her acknowledgement of other programs and services including PhilHealth and livelihood trainings.
Continuous support for the program
DSWD Field Office IV-A Regional Director Leticia T. Diokno thanked the members of the two advisory committees for taking their time to listen to the beneficiaries and continuously helping the DSWD in answering their concerns.
Dir. Diokno also encouraged the beneficiaries to help the DSWD in improving the delivery of programs and services to the people.
“Bilang mga parent leader, kapag may naririnig kayong mga negatibo o tanong tungkol sa programa, sa inyo na dapat manggagaling ang pagtatama dahil kayo ang higit na nakakaalam ng tama. Sama-sama nating aksyunan ang mga problema,” Dir. Diokno said to beneficiaries.
The partner agencies also thanked the DSWD and the beneficiaries for the opportunity.
PhilHealth Region IV- A Representative Nerissa Abela answered queries from beneficiaries and clarified issues on availing of the PhilHealth benefits. According to Abela, this dialogue helped them hear what is happening in the ground and will the help the agency clarify misconceptions and make the right solutions on the issues being raised by the beneficiaries.
All other agencies commit to further support the program and deliver convergence of services to help raise the living condition of the families in the CALABARZON Region.#