Negros island region: A total of 141,421 Group 2 beneficiaries or near-poor households in Negros Island Region (NIR) have received PHP2,000 cash aid each in the initial rollout of the national government's Unified Package for Livelihood, Industry, Food, and Transport Assistance (UPLIFT).

According to Philippines News Agency, data from the Department of Social Welfare and Development-Negros Island Region (DSWD-NIR) showed PHP282.842 million has been disbursed to the beneficiaries in Negros Occidental, Negros Oriental, Siquijor, and Bacolod City during the month-long payouts from July 20 to August 21. The completion of the initial payout marks a significant milestone in the region-wide implementation of UPLIFT. The DSWD-NIR is already preparing for the additional 67,000 beneficiaries set to receive assistance under the succeeding rollout.

In this highly urbanized city, 2,070 qualified beneficiaries received PHP4.14 million during the three-day payout from August 10 to 12. One of the beneficiaries, Dina Francelizo de Pedro, a young mother from Purok San Roque I, Barangay Handumanan, expressed that their family has been struggling financially due to a limited budget given her husband's modest income. She shared, "I am very happy to receive the assistance. It is a big help to us. We are struggling financially. There are days when we can only eat two meals a day."

De Pedro mentioned that she used the aid to buy rice for her family and spent some of the amount on her children's school projects. Beneficiaries like De Pedro will continue to receive the same amount every month until December 2026.

Throughout the initial payout, the DSWD-NIR collaborated with local government units, district representatives, and partner agencies to facilitate beneficiary validation, information dissemination, and the efficient delivery of assistance. To assist beneficiaries unable to travel to the designated payout venues, agency personnel conducted house-to-house payouts for those who are bedridden or confined in hospitals and initiated appropriate arrangements for those in correctional facilities.

The UPLIFT program, which aims to help target households meet their essential needs while strengthening their economic resilience, generates the list of beneficiaries through the Community-Based Monitoring System of the Philippine Statistics Authority. This system ensures that the assistance reaches eligible households based on validated socio-economic data.