ILOILO City – A total of 967 micro rice retailers in Western Visayas received cash assistance under the Sustainable Livelihood Program – Economic Relief Subsidy yesterday.
The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Region 6 released P14,505,000 for recipients who each got P15,000.
Here is the breakdown of the 967 retailers per province as identified by the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Region 6:
* Aklan – 97
* Antique – 171
* Capiz – 185
* Iloilo – 282
* Iloilo City – four
* Negros Occidental – 211
* Guimaras – 17
“We are glad that we are able to help more small rice retailers this time. We believe that, in a way, we are helping them cope with the current situation,” said DSWD-6 director Carmelo Nochete.
The simultaneous payout yesterday was done in different venues in the region to continuously address the ongoing challenges faced by micro rice retailers due to price ceiling on rice as mandated by Executive Order 39, series of 2023, issued by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.
The DSWD-6 first released P2,535,000 in cash assistance to the first batch composed of 169 beneficiaries from across the region on Sept. 13 and 14.
On Sept. 19, 82 more small rice retailers from Iloilo province received a total of P1,230,000 in cash aid.
The assistance aims to mitigate the losses of retailers who purchased their rice supplies at a higher price prior to the imposition of a price cap on regular milled rice at P41 per kilogram and P45 per kilogram beginning Sept. 5./PN
