The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) is set to launch a new program after the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) Board, chaired by President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr., approved the Panahon ng Pagkilos: Philippine Community Resilience Project (PCRP) with a Php56.706 billion budget.

Director Bernadette Mapue-Joaquin of the DSWD’s Kapit-Bisig Laban Sa Kahirapan-Comprehensive and Integrated Delivery of Social Services National Program Management Office (KALAHI-CIDSS-NPMO) said the Panahon ng Pagkilos project targets to serve 4.13 million households across the country.

“We will be covering 500 municipalities based on key criteria at maco-cover po natin ang 4 million household target beneficiaries natin,” Director Mapue-Joaquin told reporters at the DSWD Thursday Media Forum on April 3.

The target municipalities were prioritized using four key criteria: poverty incidence, indigenous population fraction, stunting rate, and environmental hazards.

“Ito pong criteria na ito ay nakabase doon sa vulnerability adaptation manual na ginawa ng DSWD kung saan lumabas na ito yung mga risk and vulnerabilities na dapat i-address para ma-ensure natin ang katatagan ng ating komunidad,” the KALAHI-CIDSS NPMO director said.

Director Mapue-Joaquin told reporters that the KALAHI-CIDSS increases access to basic services while the Panahon ng Pagkilos, the successor program of KALAHI-CIDSS, aims to build community resilience.

“Example po ay yung mga day care center natin. Yes, may day care center under the KALAHI-CIDSS but with the Pagkilos, we look into the location kasi baka binabaha. We look also into the design to ensure na resilient sya sa kung anumang risks, vulnerabilities, and hazards sa community,” Director Mapue-Joaquin explained.

According to the KALAHI-CIDSS director, the creation of the Panahon ng Pagkilos was anchored on the “success of the KALAHI-CIDSS National Community-Driven Development Program (NCDDP) which began in 2014 with funding from the World Bank. (YADP)