DSWD’s Balik Probinsya program help 343 returned families in CV

MINERVA BC NEWMAN

CEBU CITY – The Balik Probinsiya Bagong Pag-asa Program (BP2P) of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) has provided temporary assistance and livelihood grants to 343 returned families in Central Visayas and 15 families were dispatched from Metro Manila and were given assistance to help them start over in their new communities.

According to DSWD-7 regional information officer Leah Quintana, DSWD here started implementing the BP2P at a time when COVID-19 cases and poverty incidence are reportedly high to help poor individuals and families cope with the ill effects of the pandemic.

The program also ensured support for rural areas where these families are reintegrated via community projects where social services can be accessed, like the KALAHI-CIDSS program, Quintana added that the agency partners with more families and local government units to continue to implement the BP2P in Central Visayas to help decongest urban poor communities and develop rural areas.

DSWD-7 implemented the program here since 2021 and it has since provided livelihood assistance through the Community-Driven development realized in five municipalities in Cebu and Bohol namely; Argao, Dalaguete, San Remigio, Medellin, and San Isidro covering eight barangays through the Kapit-Bisig Laban sa Kahirapan Comprehensive and Integrated Delivery of Social Services (KALAHI-CIDSS).

Each town received P7.5 million to help fund high-priority needs like isolation facilities and farm-to-market roads.  These are critical program in helping returned families adjust to their new lives.

Local government units are capacitated by KALAHI-CIDSS in empowering beneficiaries to participate in project implementation while BP2P continues to support their well-being in order to build a resilient community.

By 2022, the program is set to partner with 22 cities and municipalities in Central Visayas with a target of more than 200 family beneficiaries. Preliminary activities have been conducted in preparation for another year of provision of livelihood assistance, transitory support packages, and community grants, Quintana said.