Cordillera Administrative Region- The Department of Social Welfare and Development Field Office Cordillera Administrative Region (DSWD FO CAR), under the leadership of Regional Director Maria A. Catbagan-Aplaten, PhD joined the nation in the 2025 Handog ng Pangulo which was conducted in line with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr’s 68th birthday on 13 September 2025.
With the theme, “ Serbisyong Sapat para sa Lahat”, DSWD FO CAR provided a range of programs and services to the different communities in the Region. As one of the highlights, Field Office CAR was able to release PhP 5,151,800.00 worth of assistance under the Sustainable Livelihood Program (SLP), turn-over of a farm to market road worth PhP 1,714,211.00 under the Kapit-Bisig Laban sa Kahirapan Comprehensive and Integrated Delivery of Social Services (Kalahi CIDSS), distribution of 1,185 family food packs, conduct of outreach activity through Project M.A.R.T.H.A, and the signing of a Memorandum of Agreement under the Listahanan.
Under the SLP, 253 Program participants benefitted from the assistance which covers funding for Seed Capital Fund, Product Development/ Diversification Grant and Employment Assistance Fund. Of this number, 77 are from Apayao Province with a total of PhP 1.54 million worth of assistance, 146 participants are from Kalinga receiving a total amount of PhP 2.46 million and Abra with 36 participants receiving a total of PhP 670,000.00. For Mountain Province, two motorcycles worth PhP 481,800.00 were also awarded. These units are expected to support the livelihood endeavors of SLP participants in Barangay Leseb in Bauko. Meanwhile, DSWD FO CAR through the Kalahi-CIDSS officially turned-over a farm to market road to the community members of Sitio Cabuluan in Brgy. San Quintin, Alfonso Lista, Ifugao. The infrastructure was completed through the community participation and counterpart amounting to PhP 52,872.72 from the Barangay Local Government Unit (LGU) and PhP 461,338.50 from the Municipal LGU. The said sub-project was completed under the Peace and Development Buong Bansa Mapayapa (PDBBM) modality which aims to assist conflict-affected areas.
Meanwhile, a total of 1,185 family food packs worth PhP 912,961.75 were also distributed to four provinces in the region. Of these, 635 were provided to beneficiaries from Abra Province, 260 in Benguet Province, 200 in Mountain Province, and 90 in Kalinga Province. DSWD FO CAR was also able to distributed hot meals to 150 individuals in Sitio Cobabeng, Barangay Poblacion in Bokod, Benguet. The nutritious meals were prepared through the Mobile Kitchen (MK) which were provided to the Field Office to serve as mobile food preparation and distribution hubs in disaster-striken areas. The MK is part of The Department’s efforts in ensuring that hunger is alleviated in all parts of the country.
To further extend the assistance from the Department, Project M.A.R.T.H.A. or Mobilizing Advocates to Reach, to Transform, and to Help All in need was also conducted in Barangay Leseb, in Bauko, Mountain Province. Through the outreach program, community members were able to access services under the Philippine Statistics Authority’s PhilSys Registration, Department of Agriculture’s fertilizers for local farmers, and Pink Women on Fire Corporation’s school supplies, rain gear, and sports equipment. A total of 252 individuals were able to avail of the services through Project M.A.R.T.H.A.
Aside from the provision of these assistance, the Department has also closed an agreement with the Provincial Government of Abra. Through a Data Sharing Agreement (DSA), the DSWD FO CAR and Abra Provincial Government committed to enhance the targeting of potential social protection beneficiaries in the province. Signed by DSWD FO CAR RD Aplaten and Governor Eustaquio P. Bersamin, the DSA allows the Provicial Government to access the Listahanan 3 data which is the Department’s database of poor households.
“We join the nation in celebrating the birthday of President Marcos by making sure that his mandates are being delivered through the different programs and services of DSWD FO CAR. We do not just bring social protection closer to the people but we also help in enhancing systems and practices by sharing our technologies and data to our partner LGUs. We hope that every stakeholder continue to do their part to make sure that we are able to deliver the best service to our kakailyans here in the Cordilleras”, Director Aplaten said.
Also in line with the celebration, SLP participants from Ifugao were also able to showcase their products. While sixteen (16) Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program graduate households were able to receive assistance from the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE). #DSWD-CAR, Social Marketing Unit, Nerizza Faye G. Villanueva-Trinidad, Information Officer II
