Marcos wants DSWD to adjust cash aid for inflation

President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. presides over the sectoral meeting on strengthening the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) at the State Dining Hall of Malacañang Palace in Manila on Tuesday, February 20, 2024. (KJ ROSALES/PPA POOL)

MANILA, Philippines — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. instructed the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) on Tuesday to ensure that the value of government aid does not diminish amid inflation, said agency Secretary Rex Gatchalian.

After a sectoral meeting with Marcos, Gatchalian said the President wants to study how to best adjust cash grant aids like the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps).

“Isa sa inatasan niyang pag-aralan namin is panong ‘wag mag diminish or mabawasan yung halaga ng mga financial assistance or grants na ibinibigay natin sa ating mga kababayan,” said Gatchalian in a Palace briefing.

(One of the things we were tasked with is to study how to make sure that the value of financial assistance or grants that we give does not lessen.)

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Gatchalian said that while the economic team is working to alleviate inflation, it was important to protect the value of the peso for the grants of programs that provide social protection.

“We were tasked to work with PSA (Philippine Statistics Authority) and NEDA (National Economic and Development Authority) to find the best index to use to make sure na ang tulong pinansyal, whether ang 4Ps grants or, I guess, all other social protection that we do, make sure namin na hindi siya napag-iiwanan kung nagkaroon ng spikes like inflation,” said Gatchalian.

(We were tasked to work with PSA (Philippine Statistics Authority) and NEDA (National Economic and Development Authority) to find the best index to use to make sure that financial help, whether it is 4Ps grants or, I guess all other social protection that we do, make sure that no one is left behind if there are spikes like inflation.)

Asked if the DSWD will push to amend the 4Ps law to accommodate these proposals.

“Give us time to compute first. We do not want to make a mistake in the index,” said Gatchalian in a mix of English and Filipino.

Some of the indexes considered were the consumer price index and the essential basket cost, said Gatchalian.

The DSWD, Gatchalian added, is also mulling the inclusion of the first 1000 days of a child’s life in the government’s anti-poverty program, from its conception up until they are two years old.

“We were really focused on the indexing of financial assistance to inflation. We were focused on the first 1,000 days. We were focused on the 4Ps, actually,” said Gatchalian.