CEBU CITY - In line with the implementation of the National Household Targeting System for Poverty Alleviation (NHTS-PA) project, the Region 7 office of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) is set to identify additional poor households in Central Visayas, assessing those who were not covered last year. "Households who were not assessed during the regular enumeration period last year in the identified areas which are considered pockets of poverty can now apply for an on-demand application," said Jaybee Carillo, DSWD7 information officer. Executive Order No. 687 dated March 2010, directs all national government agencies to adopt NHTS-PR as a mechanism in identifying poor households who deserve to receive social protection programs nationwide.
Carillo said this will provide an opportunity for households who were not included in the previous assessment in April 2009 to March 2010 to be listed, especially those whose places of residence were identified as within the target area to be included in the project's database. On-demand application is designed to be conducted and completed within a period of 30 working days. Data from the National Statistical and Coordination Board showed that poverty incidence increased from 10.2 percent in 2003 to 11 percent in 2006. The latter is equivalent to 1.9 million families who could not meet their basic food requirements.
