THE Department of Social Welfare and Development in Davao Region (DSWD-Davao) will begin the distribution of Emergency Cash Transfer (ECT) assistance to families affected by the magnitude 7.8 earthquake that struck parts of Davao Occidental, Sarangani, and General Santos City (GenSan).
Maria Isabel Lanada, director of the DSWD Disaster Response Management Bureau (DRMB), said the rollout of the ECT was fast-tracked following the directive of DSWD Secretary Rex Gatchalian, after the agency completed the distribution of food and non-food assistance to affected communities.
“Mamimigay na po kami ng emergency cash transfer sa ating mga kababayan (We will now provide emergency cash transfer to our fellow citizens),” Lanada said on June 22, 2026.
Based on the initial assessment of DSWD, more than 139,000 families in the Davao Region and Soccsksargen were affected by the earthquake. The agency has allocated ₱799.59 million for the ECT distribution this week.
Lanada added that Gatchalian is set to visit earthquake-affected communities on June 23, including the municipalities of Sarangani and Jose Abad Santos (JAS) in Davao Occidental, General Santos City, and Balut Island.
She said the ECT is part of the early recovery efforts of the government to help families rebuild and recover from the impact of the disaster. The cash assistance will allow affected households to purchase other essential needs aside from the food and non-food items already provided by DSWD.
The agency also reported that around 84,580 houses were either totally or partially damaged by the earthquake.
DSWD emphasized that the ECT distribution aims to ensure that all affected families receive support as they recover from the devastation caused by the quake.
Earlier, Gatchalian said during his June 13 visit to Malita, Davao Occidental, that the department was expediting the release of financial assistance for affected communities.
He said that during his meeting with local officials of Davao Occidental and DSWD-Davao, the department had already requested a list of affected families to begin the ECT distribution by June 20. The amount of assistance, he added, would depend on the extent of damage sustained by each community.
The cash aid will be distributed in multiple waves to help affected families gradually regain financial stability.
A magnitude 7.8 earthquake struck offshore of Maasim, Sarangani, at 7:37 a.m. on June 8, 2026, and was felt in several parts of Mindanao. The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) subsequently issued a tsunami warning following the earthquake. RGP
