The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) on Sunday said more than P935 million worth of educational assistance has been distributed to some 370,000 student beneficiaries, as the program reaches its fourth week.
A GMA News Online report said DSWD Undersecretary Jerico Javier said that the overall amount disbursed under the cash assistance program was at P935,971,800 as of September 11.
Since August 20 – the first of the six Saturdays set for the cash payout that will end on September 24 – the program has already catered to a total of 372,298 students, the report said.
On September 10 alone, Javier said, at total of P261,208,000 in cash was disbursed to 104,326 beneficiaries, the report further said.
The report also quoted Javier as saying that there were no reports of any problems encountered during the distribution on Saturday.
“So far, there was no reported problem from all our payout sites nationwide,” he said.
Under the program, up to three students per indigent family could receive P1,000 for elementary students, P2,000 for high school students, P3,000 for senior high school students, and P4,000 for college students or vocational courses, the DSWD said.
The DSWD also said it has closed the online application for the educational assistance program due to the high volume of applications against limited available funds.
Earlier, DSWD Secretary Erwin Tulfo said that over two million students have registered online for the program.
Asked on the possibility for the online application to reopen, Javier said it may if the budget permits, GMA News reported.
“As per the Secretary, kung kakayanin pa po ng budget [reopening the online application is possible if the budget would still be enough],” he said.
The DSWD has earmarked P1.5 billion for this initiative, expected to cater to up to 400,000 students all over the country.
