DEPARTMENT of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Secretary Rex Gatchalian met with Ambassador of Finland to the Philippines Juha Markus Pyykkö and United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) Country Representative Oyunsaikhan Dendevnorov in separate courtesy calls on Monday, March 27, 2023, to discuss possible partnerships on the different areas of social protection and development.

During his meeting with Ambassador Pyykkö, Gatchalian discussed the DSWD’s initiatives to streamline its existing programs and processes and to revitalize its Social Welfare and Development Center for Asia and the Pacific (SWADCAP) as an academy to further equip and train the social service workforce, especially the social workers; non-government organizations (NGOs); local government personnel and other service providers offering and implementing social protection packages.

The social welfare department secretary also mentioned that the DSWD is gathering best practices, contents, and training modules, among others, for the academy.

In response, Ambassador Pyykkö introduced the study on the Home-Grown School Feeding (HGSF) Programme of the Finnish Government.

The study, which was led by the Finnish Centre of Expertise in Education and Development (FinCEED), aims to provide a comprehensive analysis of the scope, gaps, effective and enabling interventions, and recommendations for the implementation of HGSF in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM).

Furthermore, the Ambassador expressed his commitment to sharing the study with the DSWD. Gatchalian said that the study may be adapted by the Department for its supplementary feeding program and may also be utilized in the academy.

In a separate meeting, Gatchalian met the representatives of UNICEF to expand collaboration on child protection. The DSWD plans to assess its Centers and Residential Care Facilities (CRCFs) and upskill and equip the house parents and other professional practitioners inside the centers. The DSWD chief also recommended actions to be taken related to promoting pathfinding models to end violence against children at the local level.

Country Representative Dendevnorov vowed to share their best practices; help the (DSWD) in the assessment of the centers; and offered to take part in the academy by sharing their modules and training the trainers of the academy on areas of social protection, poverty reduction, and planning and budgeting among others.

The DSWD continues to build and expand its partnerships with other organizations for the improvement of the social welfare workforce and to better improve the quality of services for the benefit of Filipinos.

‘DSWD extends aid to oil spill-affected residents in Batangas’

Meanwhile, following the widespread effects of the oil spill incident in Oriental Mindoro last month, the DSWD has extended assistance to the affected residents in the province of Batangas. To date, more than P1.5 million worth of humanitarian assistance has been provided by the DSWD to the affected population.

The social welfare department, through its Field Office IV-A Calabarzon and in coordination with the City Social Welfare and Development Office (CSWDO) of Batangas City, facilitated the distribution of 1,762 family food packs (FFPs) to the affected fisherfolks and tourism industry workers in six barangays of Isla Verde.

Based on the latest report, there are 1,767 families or 7,740 individuals residing in Batangas City who have been affected by the oil spill incident.

In addition, the DSWD already prepositioned 9,000 food packs for the local government units (LGUs) of Nasugbu, Calatagan, Balayan, Lemery, Lian, and San Juan. Each municipality has an allocation of 1,500 FFPs which can be utilized when needed.

Meanwhile, the DSWD is currently processing the downloading of funds to the LGUs in Batangas province for the implementation of the Cash-for-Work (CFW) program intended for target affected beneficiaries from Calabarzon (Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal, Quezon), who will be deployed for 15 days of work.

The CFW program is part of the DSWD’s effort to mitigate the effect of the oil spill as it is now affecting the province.

The DSWD continues to monitor the effects of the oil spill incident so that immediate action can be taken to help the affected residents.