The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) has provided over P20 million in humanitarian aid, including 26,000 boxes of family food packs (FFPs), to families hit by Tropical Storm ‘Ramil’ in Western Visayas and other regions.
“We expect these numbers to increase,” Asst. Secretary Irene Dumlao of the Disaster Response and Management Group (DRMG) said in a radio interview.
Dumlao, also the DSWD’s spokesperson, said the amount of humanitarian aid included 26,000 boxes of family food packs (FFPs) already distributed to affected localities as augmentation support to ensure that the basic needs of internally displaced persons (IDPs) are met.
The bulk of the total FFPs dispatched, comprising 21,000 boxes, were sent to Western Visayas, specifically in the provinces of Capiz and Iloilo, which bore the brunt of TS Ramil.
Aside from the FFPs, the DSWD also provided ready-to-eat food (RTEF) boxes for those stranded in different ports. This is aligned with the directive of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. that no disaster-affected individual will go hungry.
As of Tuesday, Dumlao said the DSWD was preparing to provide cash aid under the Emergency Cash Transfer (ECT) program to support the early recovery of those affected by the tropical cyclone.
It was explained that the ECT is an adaptive strategy by the DSWD that aims to bridge the gap between immediate disaster relief, humanitarian response, and early recovery support after disasters and emergencies by providing unconditional cash assistance to victims.
The DSWD will provide the ECT as soon as concerned local government units have submitted their master lists of affected constituents.
