The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) on Wednesday said the Department of Budget and Management’s (DBM) approval of additional PHP3 billion funding for the Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situation (AICS) program is perfectly on time considering the people’s increasing demand for support services.

“This initiative will help the DSWD continue providing assistance to individuals and families facing difficulties for the remaining months of 2023,” DSWD Assistant Secretary for Strategic Communications Romel Lopez said in a statement.

Lopez, also spokesperson of DSWD, said the Special Allotment Release Order (SARO) for DSWD and its corresponding Notice of Cash Allocation (NCA), approved by the DBM on Nov. 16, will cover the budget deficiency for the agency’s AICS program, aligned with the directive of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. to strengthen social protection measures.

With the additional funding in place, Lopez said more individuals in need of various aid can seek medical, burial, transportation, educational, food and financial assistance from the DSWD.

“The approval of the supplementary budget is a testament to the Marcos administration’s unwavering commitment in addressing the immediate needs of poor and vulnerable Filipinos,” he said.

Earlier, Senate finance committee chair Senator Juan Edgardo Angara filed a bill seeking to institutionalize the DSWD’s financial aid program, noting how it had benefited thousands of poor Filipinos at the height of the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic.

He said making the program permanent would help provide a system that would be “financially and administratively capable of responding to the needs of Filipinos when dealing with an extreme circumstance.”

“Since its inception, the AICS [program] of the DSWD has been a lifesaver for many families undergoing difficult challenges and as such, this program should be institutionalized to ensure it is always there for those in dire need of assistance,” Lopez quoted Angara as saying. (PNA)