A total of 810 partner-beneficiaries of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD)-Bicol’s water and food project from two provinces received their wages from the Department of Labor and Employment’s (DOLE) emergency employment program early this week.

In an interview on Thursday, Carl James Cabarles, DSWD disaster risk reduction management division information officer, said DSWD partnered with DOLE to integrate the Tulong Panghanapbuhay sa Ating Disadvantaged/Displaced Workers (TUPAD) Program into the implemention of “LAWA (Local Adaptation to Water Access) at BINHI (Breaking Insufficiency through Nutritious Harvest for the Impoverished)” Project.

“The DSWD’s LAWA at BINHI Project was extended through the DOLE’s TUPAD program. With new beneficiaries, we provide additional income and livelihood by engaging them in constructing water access infrastructure and implementing sustainable farming practices. The 810 is part of the 7700 new partner beneficiaries of DSWD’s LAWA at BINHI Project in the region,” he said.

Cabarles said the payouts were processed through a remittance center that covered a 20-day cash-for-training and work program for 552 beneficiaries from Batuan and Masbate City, Masbate province, and 258 beneficiaries from the towns of Castilla, Donsol, and Pilar, all in Sorsogon province.

“Each beneficiary received a full payment of PHP7,900. They receive daily wages based on the prevailing Regional Daily Minimum Wage Rate (RDMWR) in the project area,” Cabarles said.

“Beneficiaries include families of farmers, fisherfolk, indigenous peoples (IPs), and other climate and disaster-vulnerable groups identified as poor by Listahanan 3 or through assessment and validation by the Local Social Welfare and Development Office (LSWDO).”

Project LAWA at BINHI aims to enhance the adaptive capabilities of impoverished and vulnerable families during severe droughts, thereby mitigating food insecurity and water scarcity caused by climate change. (PNA)