Since President Duterte assumed office in 2016, over 51,400 families have graduated from the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) after attaining self-sufficient status, the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) said Monday, Nov. 15.

In a taped briefing aired late Monday, DSWD Secretary Rolando Joselito D. Bautista reported to President Duterte that a total of 51,475 households have graduated from 4Ps from 2016 to 2021.

“Ito ay katibayan na ang benepisyaryo ng 4Ps ay nakatayo sa kanilang mga sariling paa bitbit ang mga kaalaman mula sa family development sessions (This proves that the beneficiaries of 4Ps can stand on their own feet carrying the knowledge from family development sessions),” he said.

He cited that a total of 838,438 family-beneficiaries have achieved self-sufficient status.

Households who are assessed as self-sufficient have the capacity to provide for their basic needs, stable income generated from either a permanent job or small business, ability to send their children to school, and are prepared to protect their households from sliding back to poverty.

Bautista noted that since 2016, 32,556 beneficiaries finished high school and college, 4,111 of whom were board passers and 11,054 got employed.

He said the budget allocation for 4Ps substantially increased from P62 billion in 2016 to P106.8 billion in 2021 for 4.4 million household beneficiaries.

Since 2008, the Pantawid Pamilya has invested in human capital development and in the health and education of poor households, particularly of children aged 0 to18 years old.

4Ps uses the conditional cash transfer scheme to provide cash grants to the beneficiaries who comply with the following program conditionalities:

-Children 3 to 18 years old must be enrolled in kindergarten, elementary, and high school, and attend classes at least 85 percent of the time each month;

-Children 0-5 years old must receive regular preventive health check-ups, growth monitoring, and vaccines;

-Pregnant women get pre and post-natal care (must be attended by skilled/professional health workers);

-Children in elementary must receive de-worming pills twice a year; and

Attendance of the grantee/parent/guardian to the monthly FDS.