The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) has issued revised guidelines on the implementation of the Emergency Cash Transfer (ECT) program to make it more responsive amid disasters in the country.
Social Welfare Assistant Secretary and spokesperson Irene Dumlao said the new guidelines make the ECT program more aligned to disaster response and early recovery efforts for internally displaced persons (IDPs).
“At the impact and immediate post-impact phase of a disaster, the ECT may be provided to IDPs for their relief and early recovery needs,” Dumlao said on Thursday.
“The cash assistance provided can be used to buy nutritious food, hygiene items, medicine, clothing, and other supplies which are not included in the relief packages provided by the DSWD,” she added.
The ECT is a disaster operations intervention that provides unconditional cash assistance to affected families that require aid after the occurrence of a calamity. Since the ECT is a post-disaster intervention, there are triggers to indicate the rollout of the assistance as stated in the revised guidelines.
“Apart from establishing that ECT can be provided during various stages of the disaster operations, the revised guidelines also provide clearer trigger mechanisms,” Dumlao said.
Under the new guidelines, the ECT can be rolled out based on three important triggers: the declaration of a “State of Calamity” in a certain locality, the market operability in the affected area based on the disaster risk reduction management council situation report, and the Post Disaster Needs Assessment (PDNA) report.
The DSWD also outlined the coverage and classification of ECT beneficiaries under the revised guidelines. These include severely affected and slightly affected families due to disasters and calamities, such as typhoons, landslides, flooding, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, armed conflict, and health outbreaks, among others.
“We assure the public that the DSWD’s ECT program is implemented in accordance with the needs of the target beneficiaries. Although we are dealing with consecutive disasters and their massive destructive effects, the DSWD affirms that the cash assistance will be given to the affected families to aid them in their early recovery and rehabilitation,” Dumlao said.
Presently, the DSWD has rolled out the ECT for those affected by the Cebu and Davao earthquakes, as well as tropical cyclones “Opong” and “Ramil” in Masbate and Capiz, respectively.
