FIFTEEN years after it first put seed capital in the hands of struggling Filipino families, the Department of Social Welfare and Development's Sustainable Livelihood Program (SLP) is no longer just marking an anniversary — it's fighting for permanence.
The program's field office in Davao Region kicked off its 15th-year celebration on July 13, 2026, with an info-desk on the 3rd floor of SM, alongside a tree-planting activity, a three-day anniversary bazaar, and a photo exhibit dubbed "Hulagway sa Paglaum," which showcases the success stories of SLP beneficiaries.
Since it began in 2011, SLP has assisted more than 4.5 million Filipinos nationwide. In Davao Region alone, records from 2017 to the first semester of 2026 show 139,533 beneficiaries served — an average of nearly 14,000 a year — through livelihood grants, enterprise development, organizational strengthening, and employment support.
From knowledge to capital
For April Sara Soberano, Regional System Data Analyst for SLP-DSWD 11, the program's mission has always started with something more basic than money.
"Unang-una hatagan sila og knowledge, and with that knowledge, mahatagan nato sila og kumpyansa, ma-enhance ilang skills, ma-enhance ilang entrepreneurial skills," Soberano said, explaining that beneficiaries are first equipped with training and confidence before they're handed seed capital funds.
(First and foremost, we provide them with knowledge, and with that knowledge, we can give them confidence, enhance their skills, and develop their entrepreneurial skills)
"With that knowledge, kaya nila ma-sustain ang katong mga seed capital nga atong gipanghatag sa ilaha (With that knowledge, they will be able to sustain the seed capital that we have provided to them)," she said during the Kapehan sa Dabaw on July 13, 2026, at SM City Davao.
That sequence — knowledge first, capital second — has translated into numbers few government programs can claim. In the first semester of 2026, SLP-Davao reported 6,557 beneficiaries who successfully set up microenterprises through the Seed Capital Fund under the Punla Phase, blowing past the revised target of 2,388 participants or a 274 percent accomplishment rate. Of those beneficiaries, 67 percent are women and 33 percent are men.
The office also posted an 88.81 percent obligation rate against an 85 percent agency target, and fully utilized 100 percent of its subsidy funds — figures officials attribute to frontloading strategies and the conversion of Community Mobilization grants into Seed Capital Funds.
Monitoring: The unglamorous part that makes it work
Handing out capital is only half the job, according to John Paul Falguera, Technical Support for SLP-DSWD 11. The program's real test, he said, happens after the money has already been spent.
"Isa sa mga ginabuhat sa program para ma-sustain gyud ilang livelihood is after sa program implementation, naa tay monitoring phase (One of the things the program does to help sustain their livelihood is that, after the program's implementation, we have a monitoring phase)," Falguera explained.
"Medyo tedious jud siya kay ginatan-aw nato ang mga association mismo, intact ilahang enterprise, operational ba jud siya, para i-comply ang usa ka monitoring phase," he said.
(It is quite a tedious process because we monitor the associations themselves to determine whether their enterprises remain intact and are still operational as part of the monitoring phase.)
Associations have to clear requirements at each stage before they're allowed to move to the next phase — and eventually "graduate" from the program. Falguera said the office doesn't just check whether training happened; it closely monitors the actual livelihood projects, both at the enterprise level and the association level.
"Gina tan-aw pud nato ang composition sa association — ang program and beneficiaries namo, if naka-benefit ba siya sa program (We also look into the composition of the association—the program and our beneficiaries — to determine whether they have benefited from the program)," he added. That data, he said, feeds directly into the office's monitoring and evaluation process and helps determine
"Unsa pay pwede namo idungag, unsa pa amoang mahatag nga tehnical assistance" — what more the office can still offer participants moving forward (What else can we add? What other technical assistance can we provide moving forward?" — referring to what more the office can still offer to the participants)," he said.
Handicrafts, upland products, and a shot at real buyers
Beyond capital and monitoring, DSWD-Davao is also leaning into market access. Falguera said the program regularly showcases beneficiary-made products — including handicrafts from upland indigenous communities — during events like the ongoing anniversary bazaar.
"Naa puy mga projects handicrafts gikan sa atong mga beneficiaries, gikan sa upland, atong mga indigenous people (There are also handicraft projects from our beneficiaries, particularly those from the upland communities and our Indigenous Peoples)," Falguera said.
"Naa pud market access assistance nga ginahimo ang DSWD. Actually, ang pag-showcase sa mga products is one way po na pagkakita ug buyers (The DSWD also provides market access assistance. Actually, showcasing the products is one way of helping them find buyers)," he said.
Under the Usbong Phase — the organizational side of the program — SLP-Davao also completed 6,744 monitoring and assessment activities in the first semester of 2026, hitting 154% of its target.
Combined across both microenterprise components, 13,301 participants were assisted during the period, while the Employment Facilitation Track is expected to post bigger numbers in the second half of the year as more project proposals move through processing.
The office has also widened its circle of partners this year, working with Tesda, the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR), Land Bank of the Philippines, Davao del Norte State College, local government units, and private organizations to strengthen skills training, market linkages, and financial inclusion for participants.
The push for a law
Fifteen years in, DSWD's biggest ask isn't more funding for a single cycle — it's a guarantee that the program outlives political cycles altogether.
"Isa sa among advocacy is ma-push tong pag-institutionalized sa atong program , and if given the chance mahimo siyang bill, dako kayo siyang impact (One of our advocacies is to push for the institutionalization of our program (SLP), and if given the chance for it to become a bill, it would have a significant impact)," Soberano said.
"Daghan pa nga mga projects ang mahimo ug mahatagan tag permanent fund, and with that ma-increase pa atong mga beneficiaries (More projects can be implemented, and if we are provided with permanent funding, we can increase the number of our beneficiaries)," he said.
That advocacy recently cleared a major hurdle: the House Committee on Social Services has approved the substitute bill seeking to institutionalize SLP as a permanent national government program. If it becomes law, the measure would lock in predictable funding, strengthen coordination among government agencies, LGUs, and the private sector, and — as DSWD puts it — protect the continuity of livelihood assistance "regardless of changes in administration."
For the rest of 2026, the regional office said it will focus on validating qualified SLP Associations for the upcoming Sibol Phase, expanding partnerships, pushing digitalization in program implementation, and strengthening market linkages for participants — all while continuing to lobby for the bill that could finally make SLP permanent. CASANDRA D. PAYAN / SPAMAST, SUNSTAR INTERN
