THE Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development (DHSUD) and the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) have signed a memorandum of agreement to make affordable housing projects more accessible to eligible Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) beneficiaries.
In a social media post on Saturday, DHSUD said the partnership will make it easier to match beneficiaries with housing options best suited to their capacities under its expanded Pambansang Pabahay Para sa Pilipino (4PH).
DHSUD Secretary Jose Ramon Aliling and DSWD Secretary Rex Gatchalian signed the agreement on August 8.
In a separate statement, the DSWD said it plans to start identifying eligible beneficiaries from among the 1.4 million 4Ps households that have already reached ‘self-sufficiency.’
“They are very good as prime targets kasi ito yung mga beneficiaries natin na ito, nag-self-sufficiency level na sila. They graduated out of the program and now we are doing the aftercare for them, and what better aftercare there is than to match them with the right housing option for them?” Gatchalian said.
Aliling for his part said beneficiaries will now have a wider option since 4PH has been expanded to not just vertical housing but also horizontal or house and lot, lot only, community mortgage program and rental.
Meanwhile, the DHSUD in a statement on Sunday said Aliling and Quezon City Mayor Joy Belmonte, in a meeting on August 8, agreed to prioritize the clearing of the city’s waterways with informal settler families.
The two officials also agreed that the informal settlers will be the priority in the rollout of expanded 4PH projects in the city.
Quezon City Hall said some 13,000 families live along the city’s different waterways.
Both officials also prefer the rental housing scheme as the most suitable set up for the affected residents, DHSUD said.
DHSUD is currently piloting the scheme within the University of the Philippines-Diliman in Quezon City.
