ARMM starts another anti-poverty program
- Source:http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?nid=2&rid=847054
- Saturday, January 16, 2016
- (PNA), RMA/NYP/EOF
COTABATO CITY (PNA) – The Department of Social Welfare and Development- Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) has launched another anti-poverty program in selected underprivileged communities in the region.
Called “Apat Dapat” program, the anti-poverty project is part of DSWD-ARMM's efforts to combat poverty in the five-province region.
The program’s pilot run is set to last until December 2016, and will cater to the 40 poorest families in 15 select ARMM municipalities, according to DSWD-ARMM Secretary Rahima Alba.
Alba said the “Apat Dapat” program supplements the ongoing poverty alleviation initiatives both of the regional and national government.
She said the program would follow the ‘four for the poor formula,’ which zeroes in on the four most basic needs of a family, namely food, water, light, and shelter.
The four basic needs were determined by a study regarding poverty incidence in the region, conducted by the Regional Planning and Development Office (RPDO).
Alba said in a statement that major interventions included ensuring families were housed in secure homes with its own water and sanitation system and a basic lighting facility, while providing them with the means to expand their livelihood and achieve food sufficiency along the way.
“Combating poverty has two phases, the long-term and the short-term. While the ‘Apat Dapat program’ is initially a short-term program, gradually we’re expecting that we’ll earn the necessary experience and milestones for the continuity and expansion of the program into a long-term solution to poverty,” Alba said.
To ensure that the program will meet its goals, the DSWD will oversee the conduct of case management of every household. It also hopes to coordinate with the Department of Health’s rural health units and its nutritionists in monitoring the health.
Three towns in five provinces of the region comprised the 15 pilot areas.
These are the towns of Matanog, Barira and Datu Anggal Midtimbang in Maguindanao; Balindong, Lumba-Bayabao, and Taraka in Lanao del Sur; Tuburan, Tipu-tipo, and Sumisip in Basilan; Talipao, Parang, and Pandami in Sulu; and Tandubas, Simunul, and Sibutu in Tawi-Tawi.