The National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) said the release of targeted subsidies to the most vulnerable Filipino families will cushion the impact of elevated prices of oil and other commodities.
Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Arsenio M. Balisacan said on Wednesday, Aug. 3, that it is crucial in the government’s efforts to help the poor cope with the continuous rise in commodity prices due to external shocks and other factors.
On Tuesday, the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) approved the release of the special allotment release order worth P4.1 billion for the targeted cash transfer (TCT) program.
Last June, inflation quickened to 6.1 percent, the fastest in more than three years. For July, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas expects the rate to remain elevated at a range of 5.6 percent to 6.4 percent.
The Philippine Statistics Authority will release last month’s headline inflation figure on Friday, Aug. 5.
Balisacan said the cash transfer program is an important intervention to protect the purchasing power of the poor, which is among the priorities of the Marcos Administration’s 8-point Socioeconomic Agenda.
NEDA is tasked to flesh out the 8-point Agenda in the Philippine Development Plan 2023-2028, which NEDA committed to deliver by the end of the year.
“Our near-term goal as envisioned in our 8-point Agenda is to safeguard Filipinos against the most pressing issues today, which are rising inflation and the lingering socioeconomic scarring caused by the Covid-19 pandemic,” said Balisacan.
The P4.1-billion budget allotment is part of the second tranche requirements for implementing the TCT Program. It will benefit over four million beneficiaries, who mostly belong to the poorest 50 percent of the country’s population.
The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) is tasked to distribute the cash subsidy.
Under the program, the DSWD will also provide P500 per month for two months. Distribution will be through remittance centers, Special Disbursing Officers, and the Land Bank of the Philippines.
Under the guidelines of the TCT Program, the DSWD will facilitate the distribution of cash grants amounting to P3,000, or P500 per month for six months.
Its guidelines were released through the Joint Memorandum Circular No. 1, s. 2022 of the Department of Finance, NEDA, DBM, and DSWD.