MANILA: Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Officer-in-Charge Eduardo Punay has expressed his gratitude to all DSWD employees for dedicating their time and effort in the prompt and continuous response to affected population in times of disaster.
“Such service helps the Department to fulfill its mandate to render and extend assistance to the needy and to continue relief operations in times of troubles like the prolonged weather disturbances now happening in various regions of the country,” Punay said in a virtual meeting with officials of various DSWD field offices Thursday.
“We are one of the top three best-performing agencies precisely because of the disaster response we are doing,” Punay said.
As of Jan. 5, the DSWD has provided assistance amounting to more than PHP40 million to the affected localities since the effects of the shear line on Dec. 26, 2022 that has affected a total of 161,145 families, or 645,097 individuals, in 1,044 barangays in Regions V, VI, VIII, IX, X, XI, XII, Caraga, and the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM).
In the Visayas, more than PHP2 million worth of humanitarian aid was provided by the DSWD to the residents affected by heavy rains brought about by a low pressure area (LPA).
In the provinces of Mindoro, Marinduque, Romblon and Palawan (MIMAROPA), the reported flooding incidents were addressed by the Department, with more than PHP2.8 million worth of assistance provided as an augmentation of the DSWD to the local government units, particularly in Oriental Mindoro and Palawan.
Its MIMAROPA Field Office recorded a total of 6,907 families or 32,525 individuals gravely affected by the increment weather.
To date, some 22,851 families or 95,996 individuals from 147 barangays in MIMAROPA and Regions V, VIII, X, XI, and Caraga have been hit by the weather disturbance.
In Cagayan and Isabela provinces of Region 2, the DSWD Field Office has provided relief assistance to some 1,285 families or 4,544 individuals after getting hit by heavy rainfall due to the northeast monsoon or “amihan.”
The DSWD has vowed to strengthen and improve its disaster response operations to assist every Filipino in line with the directive of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.
Source: Philippines News Agency
