Zamboanga City – The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) is currently conducting an assessment of the living condition of the 287,418 Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program household-beneficiaries in region 9. This is to monitor their progress upon benefiting from various programs and services.

Using an enhanced Social Welfare and Development Indicator (SWDI), families are being evaluated in terms of their economic sufficiency and social adequacy, according to Regional Director Zenaida Arevalo.

“The SWDI is part of the department’s effort to determine to what extent the Pantawid families have improved their lives based on their financial sufficiency and stability and as well as their social functioning so that necessary interventions which may include employment facilitation, skills training and provision of livelihood opportunities can be carefully and efficiently planned out.” Arevalo stated.

In economic sufficiency, families are being assessed based on the employability skills of members, employment and salary, source of income, membership to social security and access to financial institutions.

The social adequacy, meanwhile, evaluated families based on the members’ health condition, nutrition and education. It also includes assessment on access to safe drinking water, sanitary toilet facility, house construction and ownership, and social issues awareness.

According to Regional Convergence Focal Rosalie Sanchez, the SWDI will cover 67 municipalities and 5 municipalities in the region which will run until October 20, 2015.

“As of today, a total of 35,686 households have already been visited and interviewed by our field workers, our Municipal / City Links, Community Empowerment Facilitators and Project Development Officers. Unlike the previous years wherein only the Pantawid workers were assigned to administer the SWDI, this year we have involved our workers from other core programs like Kalahi and SLP because we have included indicators that are supposed to be shouldered by Kalahi and SLP like the infrastructures and capital seed fund for sustainable livelihood.” Sanchez explained.

Meanwhile, Arevalo added that SWDI results will define how the poverty alleviation programs and services such as Pantawid, Kalahi-CIDSS, SLP and others as provided by the government have been impacting and improving the lives of the poor Filipinos. ###