DAVAO CITY – The National Commission of Senior Citizens (NCSC) has urged senior citizens to register in their Elderly Data Management System (EDMS) which aims to streamline and identify eligible recipients under Republic Act (RA) 11982, or the expanded Centenarians Act of 2016, which benefits senior citizens in their 80s and 90s.
The legislation extends its coverage to Filipinos within the Philippines or abroad. It also creates an EDMS to identify seniors eligible under the Centenarians Act.
Speaking at the Kapehan sa Dabaw at the SM City Davao on Monday, March 4, Angelo M. Pascual, project development officer at NCSC, said that online registration plays a crucial role in digitizing government records and identifying beneficiaries eligible under the law.
Pascual said the current online data only has around four million senior citizens. He added that the commission aims to expand the data to nine million to accommodate the growing population of senior citizens expected to reach around 12 million by 2030.
He said that the NCSC works to unite numerous stakeholders and seniors for better program implementation, focusing on improving senior citizen’s health and well-being and creating supportive environments for older people.
“Online registration enables individuals who turned 80, 85, 90, and 95 to receive social pensions, and those who are not to be incorporated into the database. NCSC is requesting all senior citizens to be registered online for their sake,” Pascual said.
Pascual said the data form can be accessed and downloaded through the official NCSC website ncsc.gov.ph. He added that those senior citizens encountering difficulties with online registration can seek help from the barangays or associations or the Office for Senior Citizens Affairs (OSCA).
NCSC executive assistant Jose Enrico Patron said their office has already collaborated with various government agencies, such as the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) and the Department of Social Welfare and Development Office (DSWD), to aid in the registration.
President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. signed RA 11982, An Act granting benefits to Filipino octogenarians and nonagenarians, amending for the purpose Republic Act No. 10868, otherwise known as the Centenarians Act of 2016, and appropriating funds therefor, on February 26.
READ: https://mb.com.ph/2024/2/26/marcos-signs-tatak-pinoy-act-expanded-centenarians-act-into-law
Under the law, Filipinos, upon reaching the age of 80, shall receive a cash gift of P10,000 and every five years after that. Those reaching the age of 100 shall continue to receive an incentive of P100,000 from the government.