The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) has so far provided P2,286,285 million-worth of relief items to families affected by the intense rainfall in Mindanao due to the intertropical convergence zone (ITCZ).
“In accordance with the order of our President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr., we are continuously reaching out the local government units (LGUs) so we can provide immediate help and comfort to the affected families,” said DSWD spokesperson and Assistant Secretary Irene Dumlao.
From May 15 to 18, the effects of ITCZ have impacted families from Regions 9 (Zamboanga Peninsula), 10 (Northern Mindanao), 11 (Davao Region), 12 (SOCCSKSARGEN) and the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM).
Dumlao said the DSWD’s Field Offices (FOs) in the affected regions are on high alert to ensure that family food packs (FFPs) and essential non-food items immediately reach the disaster-hit families.
The DSWD’s FO-SOCCSKSARGEN distributed on Saturday (May 24) FFPs to 376 families in flood-hit Barangay Poblacion in the municipality of Carmen in Cotabato.
The DSWD FO-Zamboanga Peninsula also swiftly delivered relief aid to various barangays in Kumalarang, Zamboanga Del Sur, where heavy rains led to flashflood and landslide incidents.
“So far, we have delivered 1,315 boxes of family food packs to the affected residents in Kumalarang and also in Bacungan, which is one of the most affected municipalities in Zamboanga Del Norte,” Dumlao reported.
The DSWD spokesperson said the agency is continuously coordinating with affected LGUs for any request for resource augmentation.
The DSWD’s field offices in Mindanao Region maintain P12 million in standby funds and 419,645 FFPs, which are ready to be tapped for disaster response operations.
