The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) assured displaced families and individuals of the recent Mt. Kanlaon eruption that the agency will send more augmentation assistance in the form of potable water and hygiene kits to ensure that their basic needs are met.

“Ang DSWD po ay may ongoing partnership with local water utilities for the supply of potable water. At gayundin po, tayo ay nag-procure ng bottled water na karagdagan para maihatid natin lalung lalo na po doon sa mga nasa evacuation centers,” DSWD Asst. Secretary for Disaster Response Management Group (DRMG) Irene Dumlao, who is also the agency’s spokesperson, said in a radio interview on Friday (June 7).

(The DSWD has an ongoing partnership with local water utilities for the supply of potable water. Also, we have procured additional bottled water so that we can deliver more to those in need, especially to those in the evacuation centers.)

Asst. Sec. Dumlao said that based on the latest DRMG report, the DSWD already provided humanitarian assistance worth more than Php2.4 million to the affected localities in Negros Occidental and Negros Oriental.

“Pero patuloy pa rin naman po yung koordinasyon natin sa mga local government units (LGUs) nang sa gayon ay makapag hatid pa po tayo ng karagdagang mga family food packs,” Asst. Sec. Dumlao said.

(But we are still coordinating with the local government units so that we can deliver more family food packs.)

Asst. Sec. Dumlao said the Department could also provide cash aid through the Emergency Cash Transfer (ECT) Program to help supplement the food and non-food items given to Kanlaon evacuees during the early recovery phase of disaster operations.

“Kapag kakailanganin ng karagdagang tulong para makapamili iyong ating mga kababayan ng ibang food items to supplement yung tinatanggap nila from the DSWD and the local government units (When additional help is needed by our affected citizens to buy other food items to supplement what they receive from the DSWD and the local government units). There is also another program that the DSWD could implement, this is the emergency cash transfer, which could complement the relief assistance,” the DSWD spokesperson explained.

The ECT will be implemented in coordination with LGUs, subject to the availability of funds, and upon submission of the Rapid Damage Assessment and Needs Analysis (RDANA), which is a disaster response mechanism that determines the extent of impacts and assess the priority needs of the communities. #