THE Department of Social Welfare and Development–Davao Region (DSWD-Davao) has assisted 124 homeless individuals as of November 2025 through its Project Pag-Abot.
Project development officer Nerjaya C. Belaya of the agency’s Social Technology Unit said the beneficiaries include 62 from Davao del Sur, 28 from Davao del Norte, 13 from Davao Oriental, 21 from Davao de Oro, and none from Davao Occidental.
Of the total, 53 belong to Indigenous Peoples (IP) communities, particularly the Badjao and Ata.
In 2024, the program assisted five individuals referred to DSWD-Davao—three families, one individual from Manay, and one from Calinan.
As of August 29, 2024, the Pag-Abot Program had already profiled 6,872 beneficiaries nationwide, reaching 2,862 individuals. Of these, 73 were admitted to processing centers, 475 received Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situations (AICS), 995 were reintegrated into their provinces, 898 were housed in Centers and Residential Care Facilities (CRCFs), and 1,168 were referred to local government units (LGUs).
Why people end up on the streets
Belaya said most families and individuals assisted by the program lost their homes to flooding or fire. Among IP communities, some end up on the streets to engage in mendicancy, especially during the holiday season. Others choose to stay in the city due to hardships in their home provinces, including crop losses caused by pests.
Before assisting, the team coordinates with concerned agencies and conducts environmental scanning to validate reports of street dwellers.
“We conducted a coordination meeting, dialogues with the concerned stakeholders, and then we proceed to environmental scanning so kaning environmental scanning we do ocular visits po ang area to validate kung nandoon talaga ang potential beneficiaries (We conducted meetings and dialogues with stakeholders, then proceeded to environmental scanning. We visited the area to validate if the potential beneficiaries are really there),” she said during the Kapehan sa Dabaw forum on Monday, November 24, at SM City Davao.
Belaya said the team holds brief orientations to explain the program’s services. While they encourage street dwellers to participate, they cannot compel them to leave the streets.
She also urged the public not to give alms, citing Presidential Decree 1563, or the “Anti-Mendicancy Law,” which aims to prevent exploitation of children and support the rehabilitation of mendicants.
She warned that giving alms reinforces dependence on begging, putting individuals, especially children, at greater risk.
What is the Pag-Abot Program?
Pag-Abot is one of the DSWD’s flagship initiatives. It aims to reach vulnerable and disadvantaged individuals, children, and families living on the streets and reduce the risks they face through targeted interventions and services.
The program assists Children in Street Situations (Ciss) who rely on public spaces for daily living; unattached adults and the elderly who depend on the streets for survival or may be experiencing mental health conditions; and homeless families displaced by fire, demolition, family crises, or migration driven by false expectations of better opportunities.
Pag-Abot provides P10,000 in financial aid for basic needs during transit and an additional P10,000 for urgent medical needs. It also covers the actual cost of land, sea, or air travel, including hauling of belongings and rebooking fees for canceled or postponed trips.
The program can also extend up to P100,000 in livelihood support, released in up to three tranches based on assessment. It offers employment assistance, psychosocial support worth P10,000 per session (up to four sessions per month), and community grants to strengthen livelihood opportunities and social protection services. RGP