The Oplan Pag-Abot project of the Philippine Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) aims to build a central database of families, individuals, and children living on the streets. The department uses customers' biometrics and interview assessments by social workers at designated processing centers to create profiles and link them to important services.
This database will allow the government to monitor the number of families in situations on the streets, the situation of families contacted, where they come from, and the reasons for their situation. DSWD says they will be able to use this database to provide him with his ID card and anything else he needs to keep his client off the streets.
“We know that part of our fundamental human rights is the right to identity. This is a first step towards this goal,” DSWD Director Rex Gatchalian said in an interview with local News Breaker. According to the announcement, it was explained in “After DSWD's work, they will be given identification documents for the first time in their lives.”
Gatchalian said in a radio interview reported by Philstar that ID cards issued by DSWD do not have the status of “government-issued” IDs and cannot be used for official transactions. However, it can be used to verify the information submitted when applying for a national ID.
“These people will have a hard time getting PhilSys because they don't have birth certificates. They don't have identification documents. We hope this is the first step to getting one,” he says.
Lack of access to ID cards is a major barrier for people on the street who need access to government social protection packages. Gatchalian said social workers' assessments determine what interventions families need, including medical assistance, access to food, transportation and relocation assistance, job opportunities, and emergency financial assistance. It is said to be useful.
“We need to expand social protection or expand government care for poor Filipinos and marginalized people,” Gatchalian said. “At Oplan Pag-Abot, we aim to reach not only children living on the streets, but also families and individuals, to make them feel valued by the government.”
July 3rd was the first day of outreach activities in Metro Manila. Gatchalian joined the Oplan Pag-Abot team to reach out to families and singles living in Macapagal Avenue and Roxas Avenue in Pasay City.
Following the outreach, the Pag-Abot team brought the families to the processing center at the Pasay City Sports Complex to undergo assessment and interview procedures. The center aims to identify which of his DSWD centers these families will temporarily stay, Gatchalian explains.
This program is now a mainstream program within DSWD. Outreach activities will continue on a rotating basis until July in three cities in Metro Manila: Pasay, Manila and Caloocan.
Article topics
Biometric Database | Biometrics | Government Services | Identity Cards | Phil ID | Philippines | Social Protection
