The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) is set to implement the Oplan Pag-Abot in all local government units (LGUs) in the National Capital Region (NCR) by September, two months after conducting reach-out operations in select highly urbanized cities.

In an interview at the Bawat Buhay Mahalaga sa DSWD Live! on Thursday (August 24), Froilan Maglaya, the Oplan Pag-Abot Team Leader, said the DSWD team will be visible in 16 cities in Metro Manila in the coming “ber months”.

“Starting September highly visible na tayo sa 16 local government units in Metro Manila,” Maglaya, a social worker, said.

Since July, DSWD Secretary Rex Gatchalian has ordered continuous reach-out operations in the cities of Paranaque, Pasay, Caloocan as well as in Quezon City and the City of Manila.

Secretary Gatchalian even led a number of Pag-Abot operations to see for himself how the social workers convince families and individuals in street situations to secure the assistance of the DSWD to remedy their situation.

“Napakaganda po ng ating implementasyon dahil patuloy ang pagsasagawa natin ng surveillance, profiling at reach out operations sa kalakhang Maynila,” DSWD social worker Maglaya noted.

(We have implemented the project very well as we continue to conduct surveillance, profiling, and reach-out operations in Metro Manila.)

Maglaya explained that Oplan Pag-Abot teams conduct a thorough surveillance to map out the areas with a high number of families and individuals in street situations, which will be prioritized for the conduct of reach-out operations.

To date, the DSWD Oplan Pag-Abot has been able to reach-out to some 174 individuals in its operations. These include children, youth, senior citizens, persons with disabilities (PWDs), and members of indigenous peoples (IPs).

According to Maglaya, the reached-out individuals were brought to DSWD-run centers and residential care facilities, as well as in LGU-run facilities to facilitate the provision of interventions and other services that are appropriate for their needs.

The DSWD will continue to expand the Oplan Pag-Abot to protect every family and individual in street situations from its risk and vulnerabilities while also ensuring that their rights and welfare are protected and promoted through the provision of necessary interventions. #