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Balik Probinsya, Bagong Pag-Asa sends more families home

Written by Lawrence N. Garcia
Qualified families undergo health screening at the BP2 send-off site prior to departure Qualified families undergo health screening at the BP2 send-off site prior to departure

In spite of the travel limitations and restrictions brought by the COVID-19 Pandemic, the Balik Probinsya, Bagong Pag-Asa (BP2) program, implemented in part by the Department of Social Welfare and Development’s (DSWD) Kalahi-CIDSS program, continues to fulfill its mandate of boosting countryside development by assisting eligible families in returning to their home province.

On June 3-4, 2021, the BP2 program sent off 13 eligible families back to Leyte as part of its latest batch of beneficiaries; bringing this year’s total number of families sent off by the program to 55.

In relocating families back to their home provinces, the BP2 program does not only seek the decongestion of Metro Manila. The program also intends to balance and promote regional development by ensuring that relocated families are given better livelihood opportunities and adequate social services.

These families will be assisted to start anew in their province amidst the health and economic crisis through the provision of different interventions or packages that would enable them to have enough resources to thrive during the transition period of their relocation under the Program.

These interventions include assistance to start a business or other livelihood sources that they are interested in and are feasible in their area. Further, they will be provided with continued support from the social and other development assistance from Local Government Units and National Government Agencies to ensure the success of their ventures.

They are also enjoined to participate in the community grants and projects that will be provided and implemented by the BP2 program in their respective communities and provinces to secure their inclusion in the development of their community and improve their access to various resources, services and opportunities.

For 2021, the BP2 program intends to send 2,000 families back to their respective home provinces. As of writing, 834 families are scheduled for send-off in the coming months.

Moreover, an additional 811 families have already been assessed as eligible by the DSWD BP2 team. The send-off schedules for these families are currently being processed by the BP2 program in coordination with the National Housing Authority and the respective beneficiaries’ receiving LGUs.

The BP2 program is not limited to sending willing and eligible families back to their provinces. As a standard part of the program, family-beneficiaries receive transportation and relocation assistance which ranges from 3,000.00 to 35,000.00 Pesos. This is intended to cover the transportation costs of moving the family's belongings.

In certain cases, family-beneficiaries may also receive a transitory family support package of 10,000.00 to 70,000.00 Pesos to cover for the family’s food and non-food essentials during the transition period.

In addition to these benefits, the BP2 Program also offers livelihood, settlement grants, transitory shelter assistance, and psychosocial support for the family-beneficiaries.

In the long run, the BP2 Program envisions a highly-developed Philippine countryside that has vast opportunities for each and every Filipino.

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