The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) announced on Saturday, Sept. 10 that the online registration for its educational assistance program for students-in-crisis has been closed after reaching 2 million registered individuals.
“Sa ating mga kababayan, kinalulungkot man po namin, pero yung sistema po namin ay hindi na po kaya yun atin pong dami nung ating mga aplikante, nasa 2 million plus na po ito pong aplikante online (To our countrymen, we are sorry, but our system is no longer able to handle the number of our applicants, there are already 2 million plus applicants online,” DSWD spokesperson Assistant Secretary Romel Lopez said in a virtual briefing.
Although more than two million people have registered for the program, Tulfo stated over DZBB that they were unable to enlist any more recipients due to a shortage of funding.
Tulfo added that while the DSWD and the House of Representatives leadership are working together for this program, those who were unable to register online may still be able to get assistance from district legislators.
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According to Tulfo, P1.5 billion has been allocated for the initiative, and around P600 million to P800 million has already been distributed.
More than 293,000 of the 400,000 target recipients-mostly college and vocational students-have already received the financial aid.
Among the 2 million registrants that will be assessed, they shall receive a text (SMS) confirmation from their respective DSWD Regional Offices if they are qualified, containing the date, place and requirements they must bring with them.
There are still 2 Saturdays left for the cash aid availment which are September 17 and 24. Qualified elementary students will receive P1,000; P2,000 for high school students; P3,000 for Senior High School students and vocational/college level students will receive P4,000. Up to three students in each family can avail of the educational assistance.
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To get the assistance, applicants need to bring with them their Certificate of Registration/Enrollment and any valid ID (of student/ guardian who will receive the payout.)
To recap, students-in-crisis include breadwinner, working student, orphan/living with relatives, child of a solo parent, has parents with no source of living, child of Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs), child of Persons With Disabilities, (PWDs), child of HIV victims, victim of domestic abuse, and victim of natural disasters.
While Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) beneficiaries and government scholars are excluded from the program and should refund the amount they received last August 20.
Previously, DSWD Assistant Secretary Romel Lopez even said that the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) was considering the possibilities of DSWD cash aid availment extension and house-to-house distribution to qualified students but the lack of funding had backfired their scheme.
