As the lead agency for Camp Coordination and Camp Management (CCCM), the
Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) continues to encourage evacuees of Mt. Kanlaon to participate in activities that ensure their protection while staying at the evacuation centers.
DSWD spokesperson Assistant Secretary Irene Dumlao said the DSWD’s Field Office (FO) 6 – Western Visayas recently led a Youth Development Session (YDS) on online privacy and safety for young evacuees staying at the municipal evacuation center in La Castellana, Negros Occidental.
“The Department may be well-known for the food provisions and cash aid that we immediately roll out
in times of calamities and disasters. However, gaya nga ng laging sinasabi ni Secretary Rex Gatchalian, ang first name natin, social welfare, pero sinisikap din natin na in everything we do, we also live up to our last name — the development side,” Asst. Secretary Dumlao said on Thursday (March 6).
The activity, which was spearheaded by personnel of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) of FO 6, aimed to raise awareness among the youth-evacuees about the importance of online safety.
\”The session primarily focused on educating young people about the essential precautions they should take when engaging online, as well as ways to safeguard themselves from risks like sexual abuse and exploitation when interacting with strangers,” Asst. Secretary Dumlao explained.
Aside from conducting learning sessions, the DSWD Western Visayas officials also reported that they have already completed the distribution of the 20th wave of family food packs (FFPs) for the evacuees currently staying in the evacuation centers of La Castallena.
“We continue to provide food support to the evacuees since ang utos nga rin po ng ating Pangulong
Ferdinand Marcos Jr., kailangan tuloy-tuloy ang pagbibigay ng food provisions sa ating mga kababayan hanggat hindi pa sila nakakabalik sa kanilang mga lugar,” Asst. Secretary Dumlao said.
As of press time, the DSWD has extended more than Php107M-worth of humanitarian aid to Mt Kanlaon-affected families and individuals from the combined resources of the agency’s Field Offices 6 and 7 (Central Visayas). (LSJ)