Deal assures Negrenses of income
A joint action plan on sustainable livelihood and environment that was inked a year ago between the Department of Social Welfare and Development and the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) is now being implemented in Negros town with a project value of more than P17 million.
The project proponents are the beneficiaries of DSWD’s Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program in barangay Banban, Ayungon town, Negros Oriental.
The memorandum of agreement was signed by Social Welfare Secretary Corazon “Dinky” Soliman and Environment Secretary Ramon Paje.
The DENR identified the forest and timberland site in Banban, while the beneficiaries did the clearing of the area, including the trellising and planting of forest and fruit-bearing trees.
The beneficiaries earned P80-120 per day for these tasks.
They also plant alternative vegetables and sell their harvest to the DENR to augment their income and even bring home some of it for their consumption.
Farming is the main source of livelihood for most families in Banban. Though the Pantawid Pamilya beneficiaries in Banban are open to responsibilities, they need another option after they would graduate from the program in December 2013 – a need answered by the DSWD-DENR National Greenin’ Program partnership.
An average of P1,000 to P1,500 per month will be earned by these families until 2016 and with Banban’s 1,000 hectares as DENR’s regional nursery and an additional 513 hectares by the end of the year for planting and 15,000 hectares more for nurseries, these beneficiaries are assured of continuous income on top of their harvest.
The Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program is a poverty alleviation program that provides conditional cash grants to poor families with children 0-14 years old for five years.
An allocation of P500 per month per household for health and P300 per child per month for a maximum of three children is given to the household who complies with the following conditions: monthly preventive health visits to the health center, at least 85 percent attendance of children in school and parents should attend family development sessions at least once a month.
