UPLIFT aid distribution in Eastern Visayas. (FB)
TACLOBAN CITY – A total of 17,219 beneficiaries received P2,000 assistance in the first day of the Unified Package for Livelihood, Industry, Food, and Transport (UPLIFT) Assistance payout totaling P34.4 million in Eastern Visayas on Monday.
Pursuant to the directive of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Field Office 8 kicked off the simultaneous distribution of the program that aims to safeguard Filipino households’ sources of livelihood and contribute to strengthening the national economy.
DSWD-8 Regional Director Grace Subong shared the program aims to address inflation, as part of the declaration of State of National Energy Emergency due to the fuel crisis.
“This is a unified package for livelihood, food, and transportation. DSWD is one of the national agencies mandated to help. We have to ensure that the poor and near-poor are attended to,” she explained.
Under the UPLIFT Assistance, one-time aid will be provided to beneficiaries of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) and the Walang Gutom Program.
Eligible recipients include households not covered by the 4Ps or Walang Gutom Program, as well as low-wage earners who have not received regular government assistance for the past six months.
UPLIFT Assistance for 4Ps beneficiaries will be credited directly to their GCash or Landbank accounts starting July 21.
Manual payouts will be arranged for Walang Gutom Program beneficiaries receiving one-time assistance; poor and near-poor households identified in the Philippine Statistics Authority’s 2024 Community-Based Monitoring System (CBMS), and workers with SSS Monthly Salary Credits of P20,000 or lower, who were also included in the 2024 CBMS, and have not received regular aid in six months.