Central Visayas Prepares 30,000 Families for Graduation from ‘4Ps’ Program

Central Visayas, Philippines – In a significant step towards self-sufficiency, around 30,000 families in Central Visayas, previously beneficiaries of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps), are now in the process of exiting the national government’s conditional cash transfer program. This development marks a notable transition for these families as they progress to a level of self-sufficiency.

According to Philippines News Agency, regional director of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), these families have been identified as ‘non-poor’ in the Listahanan 3 database, indicating their improved economic status. The 4Ps program currently has 75,331 households enrolled in Central Visayas. The latest reassessment, utilizing the Social Welfare and Development Indicator (SWDI) tool, revealed that 26 households are at the survival level, 45,386 at the subsistence level, and 29,919 have achieved self-sufficiency.

The SWDI tool is instrumental in measuring the well-being of households in terms of economic sufficiency and social adequacy, guiding the 4Ps program in identifying necessary interventions for families to reach self-sufficiency. Lucero explained that households assessed at Levels 1 and 2 will remain in the 4Ps program, while those identified as Level 3, or self-sufficient, will begin the exit process through the 4Ps Kilos Unlad Social Case Management Strategy.

Lucero assured that families graduating from the program would continue to receive support from the DSWD, local government units (LGUs), and other partner stakeholders. These entities will provide interventions and services to help these families sustain their well-being. Furthermore, under the Joint Memorandum Circular (JMC) No. 2022-001 between DSWD and the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), LGUs are encouraged to enact social protection ordinances complementing the 4Ps program, including post-program interventions for the graduating families.