DSWD Field Office V Regional Director Arnel Garcia (fourth from left) and local executives from different cities and municipalities of Albay present the signed Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) on the implementation of the cash-for-work program. With them is Presidential Adviser for Political Affairs Francis Tolentino (in light blue polo) who witnessed the MOA signing.

The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), through its Field Office in the Bicol Region, yesterday inked a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) with the local government units (LGUs) of the province of Albay for the implementation of the Cash-for-Work (CFW) program as part of the Disaster Risk Reduction and Management projects for families and individuals who have been affected by the volcanic activities of Mayon.

The CFW is a short-term intervention implemented by the DSWD to provide temporary employment to distressed or displaced individuals by participating in preparedness, mitigation, relief, rehabilitation or risk reduction projects and activities in their communities or in evacuation centers.

Under the MOA, each beneficiary will receive P290 per day for 10 days of work. The work that they will perform will be based on the need of the evacuation center where they are staying.

Some 139 beneficiaries will benefit from the program in the Municipality of Bacacay; 3,035 in Camalig; 2,658 in Daraga; and 3,264 beneficiaries in Guinobatan.

In Legazpi City, 4,074 displaced individuals will be included in the program, while a total of 1,368 and 1,925 beneficiaries are being targeted in Ligao City and Tabaco City, respectively.

Meanwhile, 1,329 beneficiaries will benefit from the CFW program in Malilipot and 3,578 in Sto. Domingo.

The fund for the cash-for-work will be transferred to the concerned LGUs, who will then manage its implementation.

DSWD FO V, in turn, will provide technical assistance to the LGUs for the program’s implementation. It will also monitor the status of the program in all its phases as well as the utilization of the fund by the LGUs.

The program will be implemented for 10 days within the month of February.

Update on affected families

As of 6 am today, 19,113 families or 72,441 persons are still taking temporary shelter in 88 evacuation centers in Albay, the highest number of which are in the Municipality of Guinobatan with 32 ECs.

Some 2,287 families or 9,720 individuals are still staying with their relatives and friends in Camalig, Daraga, Malilipot, and Santo Domingo.

The DSWD is continuously monitoring the status of the displaced families and individuals to ensure the provision of their needs while they are staying in the temporary shelters.

Field Office V has deployed additional staff in nine evacuation centers in Guinobatan to monitor the distribution of relief aid from the Department and to coordinate closely with the LGU on matters concerning camp management to ensure the security and well-being of the displaced families.

Albay is still under Alert Level 4 with the danger zone extending to more than nine-kilometer radius from the summit vent of Mayon Volcano. ###