The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD)’s Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) is a human development program of the national government that provides conditional cash grants to the poorest of the poor. The aim is to improve their health, nutrition, and education, particularly of children aged 0-18, for a maximum of seven years. It is also a national poverty reduction strategy launched in 2008 and institutionalized by Republic Act No. 11310, better known as the 4Ps Act of 2019.

The expected year for self-sufficiency for the 2022 cohort is 2029, based on the maximum seven-year target of the 4Ps. This aligns with President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.’s speech on July 18, 2023, during the DSWD activity in Tondo, Manila: poverty alleviation is his administration’s ultimate goal by 2028.

Skills training as a route to success

The 4Ps beneficiaries attend training sessions offered by the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), which could help them earn or as another source to augment their household income.

The beneficiaries are given skills training in addition to the cash grants they regularly receive, based on their compliance. The cash grants are intended to support the health and educational needs of the children. Training is given to ensure that the households are equipped with the necessary skills to navigate towards self-sufficiency and eventually graduate from the program. As the poor rise above the poverty line, aligned with what President Marcos has envisioned, the existing 4Ps beneficiaries are expected to graduate yearly and be replaced by new poor households.

Their training focuses on starting a business and is coupled with skills training. In Tarlac province alone, there were monthly training schedules from May to September 2023.

The training, which focused on “bunog” fish processing, was held in San Jose in May 2023. Nineteen of the 4Ps beneficiaries were trained. It was followed by another training in June in San Clemente. Topics discussed included “How to Start a Business,” “Consumer Awareness and Responsiveness,” and “Making Siopao and Siomai.”

In August, the training was held in Concepcion and focused on making delectable confections such as “polvoron,” “pastillas,” and “yema.” Twenty 4Ps beneficiaries participated in it. Another twenty in Capas attended the training on mulberry processing. Training on pineapple processing was also held in Capas in September, with thirteen 4Ps beneficiaries.

At the beginning of the third quarter of 2024, the Philippine Information Agency (PIA) reported that a hundred 4Ps beneficiaries of Camiling, Tarlac, completed the DTI’s Entrepreneurship Mind-Setting Seminar. This was followed by another entrepreneurship seminar in Gerona, Tarlac, in August, with one hundred sixty 4Ps beneficiaries.

“The seminar was tailored to equip the participants with the knowledge they need to venture into business. This will not only harness them in starting a business but also motivate them to become economically empowered,” said DTI OIC-Provincial Director Florencia Balilo.

“This is good for us, the 4Ps beneficiaries, since it gives us knowledge on how we can be independent. We can then start our own business and create a livelihood that will supplement our day-to-day expenses,” said Jessa Domingo.

‘Graduating’ from being 4Ps beneficiaries

With their training done, 4Ps beneficiaries who managed to become self-sufficient were able to “graduate” from being beneficiaries. Various PIA regional offices have reported the number of graduates between May and September 2023.

In May 2023, 689 beneficiaries in Zamboanga del Sur graduated from the program, completing their journey towards self-sufficiency. Meanwhile, 197 graduates came from Palawan. More graduates in July came from Bulacan, with 32,340, and 407 from Occidental Mindoro in September.

In Oriental Mindoro alone, PIA-Mimaropa reported that the decrease in the number of 4Ps beneficiaries began in the third quarter of 2023. From 53,896 in March, the number of beneficiaries decreased to 40,232 in June and 38,526 in August.

For the first quarter of 2024, the DSWD reported that 25,904 beneficiaries of 4Ps nationwide have graduated from the program after achieving self-sufficiency. This figure includes 4,333 from the Cagayan region in January, 1,182 from Aklan in February, and 51 from Oriental Mindoro in March.

As the DSWD and the PIA reported, an additional 2024 graduates included 2,260 from Bulacan in June and 2,841 from Kalinga in July. By the end of the year, the DSWD reported a total of 677,658 self-sufficient households who had graduated from the 4Ps.

The continuous nationwide graduation of the 4Ps beneficiaries during President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr.’s administration signifies that the program effectively reduces poverty.

“By investing in human capital and providing vulnerable families with the tools they need to succeed, the program has made significant steps in reducing poverty and improving the well-being of poor Filipinos,” said DSWD Assistant Secretary Irene Dumlao.

Based on the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) Family Income and Expenditure Survey (FIES), the number of poor individuals in the country decreased from 19.99 million (or 18.1%) in 2021 to 17.54 million (or 15.5%) in 2023. DSWD Secretary Rex Gatchalian explained that 17.54 million is equivalent to 3.49 million households. He is confident that the President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr.’s government can achieve a single-digit poverty incidence before the end of term in 2028.

Words of appreciation

Another indicator of the 4Ps’ effectiveness is the quality of its graduates. Aside from parents already having a steady source of income, President Marcos coming from the family of educators ensures that the 4Ps will also be used to consistently send children to school. As a result, former 4Ps monitored children have also become graduates of their respective schools and licensed professionals.

The 2023 Licensure Examination for Civil Engineers was topped by Alexis C. Alegado, a cum laude graduate from Ilocos Norte, home province of President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. In additional reports of the DSWD, other former 4Ps-monitored children who passed the same examination were Shemiah M. Pineda from Occidental Mindoro, Jiazel C. Mabunga from Romblon, and Vianne Kaye H. Rodriguez from Negros Oriental.

“When our household was not yet a beneficiary of 4PS, it wasn’t possible for my siblings and I to study at the same time. Someone had to stop and sacrifice. So, thank you to 4Ps of the DSWD and President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. for continuously helping those in need, especially young people who want to study,” Jiazel Mabunga said.

“Fishing is the primary livelihood of my father. The 4Ps of the DSWD has greatly helped us in our education. It is a good program of the government, so it is fitting that it be used the right way,” said Alexis Sumbe, former 4Ps monitored child from Palawan, who ranked fifth in the 2023 Licensure Examination for Fisheries Professionals.

According to the DSWD, among the former 4Ps-monitored children who were topnotchers in the March 2024 Licensure Examination for Teachers were Khane Jevie Rose S. Cervantes (Top 1) from Davao Region and Jennifer G. Manrique (Top 9) from Mimaropa Region for the elementary level. For the secondary level, the topnotchers were Christian Albert B. Paskil and Clarence Joy Salmorin, both from the Mimaropa Region (Top 5), Jillian H. Calipes (Top 6) from the Davao Region, and Joanne E. Cagata (Top 8) from the Caraga Region.

In the report of DSWD Field Office 5, among the former 4Ps-monitored children who were from the Bicol Region and topnotchers of various licensure examinations are the following: 2024 Social Workers Licensure Examination, Sheena Mae Obispo of Albay (Top 1); 2024 Geodetic Engineers Licensure Examination, Aaron Paul Lolor (Top 4); and 2024 Forester Licensure Examination, James Llaguno (Top 6). Obispo, Lolor and Llaguno are all from Albay.

The passers of the March 2024 Licensure Examination for Teachers (Elementary Level) were Mylene Bontile (Top 6) and Ciara Jalimao (Top 8); at the Secondary Level, they were Pamela May Orolfo (Top 8) and Joshua Biliran (Top 10). Bontile, Jalimao, and Orolfo are from Camarines Norte, while Biliran is from Masbate.

Kristina Bulawin Pintikasi, one of the program’s beneficiaries, said in an interview by a PIA correspondent, “I’m thankful to President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. that the poor here in Zamboanga Sibugay were included in the [4Ps] program and assistance from the government.”

The achievement of these former 4Ps-monitored children is a testament that the program is on track to break the inter-generational poverty cycle through education. (PNA)