Four P's

Introduction

Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program or 4Ps (formerly Ahon Pamilyang Pilipino) is a conditional cash transfer program of the Philippine government under the Department of Social Welfare and Development.[1] It aims to eradicate extreme poverty in the Philippines by investing in heath and education particularly in ages 0–14.[2] It is patterned on programs in other developing countries like Brazil (Oportunidades) and Mexico (Bolsa Família).[3] The 4Ps program now operates in 17 region, 79 provinces and 1,261 municipalities and 138 key cities covering 3,014,586 household beneficiary.

Program structure[edit]

Objective[edit]

The program have focused on two objectives:

1. Social assistance: provide cash assistance to address the short-term financial need.

2. Social development: by investing in capability building they will be able to break intergenerational poverty cycle.

Eligibility[edit]

The poorest among poor families as identified by 2003 Small Area Estimate (SAE) survey of National Statistical Coordination Board (NSCB) are eligible. The poorest among poor are selected through a proxy-means test.[6] Economic indicators such as ownership of assets, type of housing, education of the household head, livelihood of the family and access to water and sanitation facilities are proxy variables to indicate the family economic category.[7] Additional qualification is a household that has children 0–14 years old and/or have pregnant women during the assessment and shall agree on all the conditions set by the government to enter the program.

Background

The Department of Social Welfare and Development patterned the conditional cash transfer system from developing countries particular in Brazil and Mexico.[4] In 2007, the DSWD pre-pilot tested in municipalities of Sibagat andEsperanza in Agusan del Sur; the municipalities of Lopez Jaena and Bonifacio in Misamis Occidental, the Caraga Region; and the cities of Pasay and Caloocan in a 50 million pesos budget.[5]

It...