BACOLOD City Mayor Evelio Leonardia has ordered all the barangay officials in the city to submit on Monday, April 6, 2020 their final lists of the beneficiary families of the social amelioration grant from the National Government.
This, after the National Government allotted a total of P1.2 billion social amelioration grant from the National Government under the guidelines of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD).
“We will strictly implement the distribution of this social amelioration assistance according to DSWD guidelines, rules and procedures,” Leonardia said.
On April 1, a teleconference was held between DSWD Assistant Regional Director Delia Villa-Bagolcol with Leonardia and the governors and mayors of Western Visayas concerning the amelioration grant guidelines.
On the following day, Leonardia together with Vice Mayor El Cid Familiaran, DILG-Bacolod City Director Ma. Joy Maredith Madayag, DSSD-Bacolod Head Pacita Tero, Administrative Officer Federico Guanzon Jr, Executive Assistant Butch Soliguen, and Sally Abelarde of DSSD-Bacolod conducted meetings with Punong Barangays, to inform them of their roles and duties under this program.
Pacita Tero, head of DSSD-Bacolod, said that those who are not covered by this amelioration program of the DSWD can access help either from the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) or the Department of Agriculture (DA).
President Rodrigo Duterte earlier announced that the government has set aside P275 billion to help low-income families across the country affected by the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) crisis. This grant to Bacolod is part of this fund allocation.
Based on the DSWD instructions, the city officials will determine the number of family-beneficiaries per barangay while the barangay captains will identify the family-beneficiaries in their respective jurisdictions.
Initially, a total of 103,658 low-income families in Bacolod will receive the social amelioration grant from the National Government.
The number of beneficiary-families to be covered by this grant was determined by the DSWD. This number excludes 4Ps beneficiaries who already have their own separate funding assistance, and families covered by social amelioration packages of the Department of Agriculture (DA) and the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE).
The funding grant, to be released by the DSWD for distribution, is set at P6,000 per month per qualified family for two months; to be doled out in two tranches – one within April, and the other within May. Thus, qualified families will receive a total of P12,000 within two months, as mandated by Republic Act 11469 or the Bayanihan to Heal as One Act.
The target beneficiaries are Informal Economy Workers, specifically those directly hired or occasional workers (labandera); subcontracted workers; homeworkers (family enterprise making crafts, delicacies); househelpers and family drivers; drivers of pedicab, tricycle, PUJs, PUVs, PUBs, taxi, and transport network companies’ registered vehicles; transport network vehicle service drivers (grab drivers).
Also included the micro-entrepreneurs and producers; operators of sari-sari stores (asset size less land is less than P100K and has employees less than 5); family enterprise owners (carinderia owners, fruit/vegetable vendors, RTW); sub-minimum wage earners (dishwashers or helpers in carinderias); farmers - not 4Ps and not covered by the DA’s Social Amelioration Package; employees affected by “no work, no pay,” and stranded workers.