A senior citizen from Brgy. Dawis Norte, Zarraga, Iloilo receives her P6,000 cash aid under the Social Amelioration Program.(Photo by Keshan Portugalite)

The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) has so far released P2.2 billion worth of cash aid to the province and city of Iloilo.

Of the total amount, P475 million was downloaded to the Iloilo City City Goverment and the rest went to local government units (LGUs) in the province.

The distribution of the cash aid in Iloilo City is expected to start within this week. Mayor Jerry Treñas said there are more than 79 thousand family beneficiaries in the city.

In the province, several beneficiaries had already received their cash aid under the DSWD’s Social Amelioration Program (SAP).

Based on data from the DSWD-6, Oton got the biggest chunk of the SAP fund allocated for the province with P95 million.

Oton is followed by Passi City, P79 million; Pototan, P76 million; Miagao, P70 million, Dumangas, P69 million; and Lambunao, P66 million.

Each qualified beneficiary in Iloilo and other parts of the Western Visayas region is entitled to P6,000 cash aid.

The social amelioration aid is intended for low-income families affected by the enhanced community quarantine imposed due to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) crisis.IMT