The Department of Social Welfare and Development in the Negros Island Region (DSWD-NIR) will start validating 17,000 new beneficiaries of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) in Negros Oriental this month.

Marhadzda Tudtud, DSWD-NIR 4Ps program chief, told the Philippine News Agency in an interview Tuesday that registration and validation in the province will start this month.

However, they need the help of local government and village officials to locate the new beneficiaries.

“The registration process will determine the final list of 4Ps beneficiaries, based on whether they satisfy the criteria for the program,” she said.

Covered by the poverty reduction program are a maximum three children under 18 years per family. They must be enrolled in either grade school or high school only.

Tudtud assured they will cater to everyone during the registration process, even if they could not present yet a Philippine Identification System (PhilSys) card issued by the Philippine Statistics Authority.

Those who cannot submit a PhilSys ID during registration will be on pending status until they can comply with all the requirements, including birth certificate and other supporting documents.

Meanwhile, PSA-Negros Oriental Chief Statistical Specialist Ariel Fortuito they accommodate up to 100 persons daily for the national ID application.

The PSA has already scheduled PhilSys registration in various towns and cities to accommodate more applicants, Fortuito said.

92% accomplishment

Fortuito noted that more than 92 percent of the total population of Negros Oriental has already registered in the government’s Philippine Identification System (PhilSys), leaving only less than 8 percent unenrolled.

“It is a challenge for us to locate these (remaining unenrolled) individuals as they may be in hard-to-reach areas,” he said.

The province’s population as of the 2024 census was pegged at 1,492,038.

Fortuito said many of those who have not yet enrolled in the PhilSys belong to the younger age bracket of 0 to 4 years old, which the PSA began registering last year.

“We are targeting a 100 percent registration of the province’s constituents, and we hope that newborn babies and young children will be immediately registered under the PhilSys program,” he added.

This capital city had the highest number of registrants with 158,529, or 111.51 percent, while the lowest was Sibulan with 45,289, or 65.55 percent. (PNA)