More than four million indigent senior citizens and 100-year-old individuals nationwide received their respective social pension and centenarian gifts in 2024 from the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD).
“From January to November 2024, a total of 4,268,801 indigent senior citizens received their monthly pension,” DSWD Assistant Secretary and spokesperson Irene Dumlao said on Friday.
Dumlao said the agency started disbursing the increased pension of P1,000 in 2024 pursuant to Republic Act (RA) 11916 or “An Act Increasing the Social Pension of Senior Citizens.”
As mandated by RA 11916, indigent senior citizens are entitled to a monthly stipend of P1,000 from the previous P500 per month starting January 2024.
The DSWD also gave recognition and incentives to 1,750 centenarians, providing each of them with P100,000 cash as mandated by law.
“We have achieved 99.43 percent of the 1,760 annual target for the centenarian program,” the DSWD spokesperson pointed out.
RA 10868 or the Centenarians Act of 2016 provides all Filipinos who reach 100 years old, whether residing in the Philippines or abroad, with a Letter of Felicitation from the President of the Philippines, congratulating the celebrant for his or her longevity and a centenarian gift in the amount of P100,000.
Starting this January, the implementation of the Centenarians Act is already under the National Commission of Senior Citizens (NCSC), as mandated by RA 11350.
RA 11350, the law that created the NCSC, mandates the transfer of functions, programs, projects, and activities related to the welfare of senior citizens from the DSWD to the Commission.
