4Ps Graduation Towards a Better Life: Proof of Moving Up

 

“There are people in the world so hungry that God cannot appear to them except as bread,” Mahatma Gandhi said.

This is the reason the government should be the hand of the Almighty caring for the poor. In Bohol, 26 percent of the households do not eat enough food; 42 percent earn P10,000 or below per month; while 57 percent have unsanitary toilets according to the data from the Provincial Planning and Development Office. This picture shows us the province needs the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD).

What has happened to the 4Ps?

After ten years, 267 beneficiaries of 4Ps from 25 towns in Bohol have finally graduated. Our beneficiaries have moved from where they started towards a better life.
This simply means program fulfilled its purpose. Those who graduated show how 4Ps made a difference in improving their well-being.

As one partner of the program, the governor Aris Aumentado, through his wife Vanessa, celebrated with them last week at the Bohol Cultural Center. This occasion sparkled with the presence of DSWD Usec. Jerico Francis Limjoco Javier, Asec. Ma. Evelyn Macaprobe, our three congressmen, and the mayors.
New beginning comes after a long wait! We should celebrate the victories of our people.               What is the 4Ps program?

The program comes from the Republic Act 11310, dubbed as the law institutionalizing the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps). In the declaration of policy, it says: “The state shall promote a just and dynamic social order thereby uplifting its citizens and marginalized sectors from poverty through policies that provide adequate social services, promote full employment, a rising standard of living, and an improved quality of life for all.” The government models the program from the one implemented in Brazil and Mexico.

In Section 4 of this RA, the 4Ps—a poverty reduction strategy investing in human capital — provides conditional cash transfer to poor households. The program intends to break the intergenerational cycle of poverty through improvement in human capital in the areas of education, health, and nutrition.

Eligible beneficiaries in this program are 18 and below, or pregnant at the time of registration. Farmers, fisherfolk, homeless families, indigenous peoples, informal settlers, and those in geographically isolated areas are automatically qualified in the program, but still subject to the standardized targeting system implemented by the DSWD.

How does a household maintain its eligibility if still qualified? Pregnant women in the household must undergo pre-natal and post-natal care. Children under the age of five must have regular checkups, receive vaccines and undergo deworming twice a year. The one responsible in a household should attend a monthly Family Development Sessions (FDS).

Each child receives from P300 to P700 educational grant per month, depending on his or her level. Households are also entitled to a health grant of P750 per month and a rice subsidy of P600 per month. The recipient families become the priority in the Sustainable Livelihood Program (SLP) of the DSWD.
But the issue: what is the outcome? The benefits of the program give us the momentum to move forward.  Testimonials

The graduation of 4Ps beneficiaries from 25 towns shows the poor no longer remain in the same status through this intervention. Their lives get better — what we eagerly expect. This is a tangible way to measure the impact of the program.

According to the Department of Education-Bohol, the office is grateful the 4Ps improved the attendance of many students. Before, the teachers felt sorry about drop-outs and absenteeism because students had to help their parents or do not have the resources. The DEPEd-Bohol also partners with the lead agency of this program because the agency relates this to its AGAK program. It prioritizes 4Ps students and makes sure they pass the LET.

Lucia Cañada from Mabini testifies during the graduation ceremony how 4Ps helped her family:

I am very grateful that my family is included in the 4Ps. As a beneficiary, I need to attend the Family Development Sessions (FDS) where I learned a lot about moral, spiritual, health and budgeting. My children have money to go to school and I am really grateful. They graduated in elementary and senior high school, one an honor student…I have made my house a little bigger. I also bought a motorcycle through an installment.

Our society should not ignore the poor. If being generous to the poor is lending to the Lord, let us continue to be generous and partner with causes that give them a fresh lease on life.