The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) in Negros Oriental province has distributed more than PHP20.6 million in livelihood kits to 2,607 “persons in distress” in 2022, an official said on Wednesday.

DTI-Negros Oriental provincial director Nimfa Virtucio told the Philippine News Agency that the “Negosyo” kits were distributed throughout the entire year through the agency’s Pangkabuhayan sa Pagbangon at Ginhawa (PPG) program and the Negosyo Serbisyo sa Barangay (NSB) program.

Virtucio said they have maximized the distribution of the livelihood kits to beneficiaries that include surrendered rebels (FRs) and member-supporters belonging to the Militia ng Bayan under the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army (CPP-NPA) as well as Typhoon Odette (Rai) victims, among others.

“Actually, we had already distributed our allocation earlier but we found that there were still other beneficiaries that qualified for the programs so we asked for an additional budget from the regional office of about one million pesos,” she said in mixed English and Cebuano.

The PPG program benefitted 1,724 individuals with a total cost of some PHP13.6 million while 883 beneficiaries received their livelihood kits totaling over PHP6.9 million, a report from the DTI-Negros Oriental showed.

The livelihood kits, costing from PHP7,500 to PHP10,000 each, included goat and cattle dispersal and “sari-sari” store start-ups, but these were given either in kind or through a voucher that a beneficiary would have to claim from a DTI-accredited outlet.

Virtucio said they were not allowed to distribute the livelihood assistance in cash form.

Monitoring is being conducted regularly, in coordination with other agencies such as the Department of Agriculture, to check on the beneficiaries and determine if they have succeeded in their livelihood endeavors, she said.

So far, reports received by the DTI here said the majority of the beneficiaries are doing well with their small businesses, she added.

Meanwhile, Virtucio disclosed that they no longer have a budget for these “Negosyo” kits for 2023.

“Unless there will be congressional insertions, we are not anymore giving out livelihood kits this year because the funds that were given through the office of Sen. Christopher Lawrence “Bong” Go have already been utilized fully,” the DTI provincial director said.

“But we can continue providing training as part of our mandate to provide business development assistance to the people,” she added. (PNA)