The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) is urging beneficiaries of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) to secure insurance coverage and become future pensioners through the state-run Social Security System (SSS).
4Ps National Program Manager and Director Gemma Gabuya said insurance “is integral to our SWDI framework. Before graduating from 4Ps, beneficiaries must have security or insurance.”
Gabuya said this initiative is part of the DSWD’s commitment to ensure the financial security and sustainability of 4Ps beneficiaries as they transition out of the program.
“We want our 4Ps beneficiaries to have a stable source of income, whether through self-employment or formal employment. Part of our metric is for them to avail of SSS insurance,” the official said.
Gabuya also clarified that the SSS monthly premium will be shouldered by the beneficiaries themselves.
“Given that they now have an income, either through employment or self-employment, SSS membership is accessible to all with an income. We strongly encourage them to take advantage of this.”
The 4Ps national program manager said the DSWD and the SSS are also exploring possibilities of providing subsidies in times of disaster or unforeseen challenges to ensure continuous coverage for the beneficiaries.
The 4Ps, which is being implemented by the DSWD, is a national poverty reduction strategy institutionalized under Republic Act No. 11310 or “An Act Institutionalizing Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps)” signed on April 17, 2019.
The DSWD’s flagship program puts a premium on giving indigent families the means to break-away from the intergenerational cycle of poverty through human capital investments.