Over 476,700 poor families have benefited from the national government’s implementation of the Emergency Subsidy Program (ESP) under Bayanihan 2, the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) disclosed Monday.
The DSWD said it has served 476,736 family-beneficiaries as provided for by Republic Act No. 11494 or the Bayanihan to Recover as One Act, as of 8 p.m., January 24.
The disbursed cash subsidies amounted to P2.98 billion, based on its latest report on the status of the DSWD’s ESP implementation under RA No. 11494.
Majority of the served beneficiaries are “additional beneficiaries” or those who did not receive Social Amelioration Program (SAP) cash aid as provided for by RA No. 11469 or the Bayanihan to Heal As One Act.
A total of 403, 427 additional beneficiaries received their subsidies worth P2.6 billion.
Also benefited from Bayanihan 2’s ESP were 73, 309 families who live in areas under granular lockdown, receiving cash assistance amounting to P386 million.
The DSWD had vowed to complete the distribution of the Bayanihan 2 cash aid within this month.
Under the DSWD guidelines, among those who are qualified to receive the subsidies are the affected low-income families in areas under gradual lockdown; those qualified families, but were not granted SAP 1 and 2 subsidy under RA No. 11469; and recently returned overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) who belong to a low-income family and are physically residing in an area under granular lockdown.