At least 1,907 indigent senior citizens in San Carlos City, Negros Occidental, received an increase in their social pension during the payout Feb. 22.
The Department of Social Welfare and Development Region 6 representatives, with the City Social Welfare and Development Office, simultaneously distributed the cash assistance in designated payout areas.
Republic Act 11916, or the Social Pension for Indigent Senior Citizens Act, which lapsed into law in July 2022, doubles the monthly pension of indigent senior citizens from P500 to P1,000, starting this year.
CSWDO Senior Citizen focal person Marval Montaño said in a city press release that each senior citizen received P6,000 for January to June 2024, for a total allocation of P11,442,000.
Of the beneficiaries in the city, 548 are from urban barangays wherein the designated payout areas include barangays 3, 6, and 2, and the Office of Senior Citizens Affairs.
The DSWD6 earlier said there are 54,403 beneficiaries in Negros Occidental and 5,975 in Bacolod City, out of the total 385,954 indigent pensioners in Western Visayas.
The Negros Occidental Social Welfare and Development Office, in collaboration with the Victorias City government and its CSWDO, meanwhile, distributed provincial social pension and salary subsidy to beneficiaries at the Barangay XIII covered court Feb. 20.
The recipients include 75 senior citizens, 21 persons with disability barangay presidents, and 46 child development workers.
The initiative reflected the government’s dedication to upholding social welfare and promoting inclusivity within the community, the city said. ||
