Residents of Butuan City’s Barangay JP Rizal benefit from UPLIFT program
By Renelle L. Escuadro
BUTUAN CITY (PIA) — The residents of Barangay Jose P. Rizal in Butuan City benefited from the government’s Unified Package for Livelihoods, Industry, Food, and Transport (UPLIFT) program, where each beneficiary received the amount of P2,000, helping them cope with the oil price shock due to the ongoing tensions in the Middle East.
The UPLIFT distribution took place on August 21 at the covered court of Barangay Doongan, this city.
A total of 57 residents from the said barangay were identified as qualified beneficiaries under the Group 2 category, based on the data from the Philippine Statistics Authority’s 2024 Community-Based Monitoring System (CMBS).
According to the barangay council, the beneficiaries neither pay any amount nor submit an application to qualify for the program. The list of qualified beneficiaries underwent review, cross-matching, and validation by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD).
They also presented a valid government-issued identification card and an active online bank account or electronic wallet for the disbursement of the cash assistance.
With distribution led by the DSWD, the department said that UPLIFT assistance is implemented by the administration of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. to help the poor, near-poor, and low-income households as they continue to face the impact of the energy emergency and to sustain their ability to meet their families’ basic needs.
The department also clarified that its UPLIFT cash assistance has three beneficiary groups, namely:
Group 1 – Using the DSWD database, grantees of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) and Walang Gutom Program will each receive P2,000 as a one-time top-up grant;
Group 2 – Poor and near-poor households (non-4Ps) based on the CBMS. Each beneficiary will receive P2,000 per month, from July to December 2026; and
Group 3 – Low-income employed SSS members who will also receive P2,000 each month from July to December 2026. (RLE, PIA Dinagat Islands)
