BY GLENDA SOLOGASTOA
ILOILO City – Indigent high school students are now covered by the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino program after it expanded its age coverage of children beneficiaries to include 15- to 18-year-olds.
The age extension aims to strengthen the government’s investment in human capital, said Assistant Regional Director Joel Galicia of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Region 6.
Now, Pantawid Pamilya children can be sure of finishing high school education, said Galicia.
“Studies show that majority of teenagers aged 15 to 18 years old have a decreasing interest to attend school as they are more encouraged by their families to look for work. Extending the age coverage will enable them to finish high school, thereby increasing their employability in the future,” explained Galicia.
In Western Visayas, 15, 646 children-beneficiaries have been found eligible to avail themselves of the extended age coverage.
Galicia said those in high school will receive P500 per month during the school year for education expenses while those in the elementary, the grant will remain at P300. The health grant is still P500.
“For a household with three qualified children in high school, the highest possible grant package they will receive is P2,000,” Galicia said.
He added that Pantawid Pamilya will also go beyond the five-year limit to support the children-beneficiaries up to 18 years old or until they finish high school, whichever comes first.
The household with high school beneficiaries will start getting the subsidy this month.
For the past five years, Pantawid Pamilya only covered poor households with children aged 14 years and below.
For Region 6, the program covers more than 311,000 households as of June 2014.
Each household receives P500 health grant monthly and P300 education grant per child during school months regardless of grade level.
A maximum of P1,400 monthly grant is enjoyed by a family with three qualified children in school, provided they comply with the program’s conditions.
These conditions include periodic check-ups and vaccinations for children up to five year old; twice a year intake of de-worming pills for children from six to 14 years old; pre- and post-natal care for pregnant women; attending Family Development Sessions; and maintaining at least 85 percent school attendance./PN
