DSWD

As the lead agency in social welfare and development, the Department exercises the following functions
Formulates policies and plans which provide direction to intermediaries and other implementers in the
development and delivery of social welfare and development services.
Develops and enriches existing programs and services for specific groups, such as children and youth,
women, family and communities, solo parents, older persons and Persons with Disabilities (PWDs);
Registers, licenses and accredits individuals, agencies and organizations engaged in social welfare and
development services, sets standards and monitors the empowerment and compliance to these standards.
Provides technical assistance and capability building to intermediaries; and
Provides social protection of the poor, vulnerable and disadvantaged sector, DSWD also gives augmentation
funds to local government units so these could deliver SWD services to depressed municipalities and
barangays and provide protective services to individuals, families and communities in crisis situation.

OPERATIONS AND PROGRAMS GROUP (OPG)
Structure of the OPG The Operations and Programs Group (OPG) shall operationalize a focused approach in
the development, implementation and management of social welfare and development programs and
services. The OPG shall also mainstream the national-initiated and the core poverty reduction programs such
as the Pantawid Pamilya, SEA-K and KALAHI-CIDSS.

POVERTY REDUCTION PROGRAMS BUREAU (PRPB)
The Poverty Reduction Programs Bureau (PRPB) shall be primarily responsible for the management of
SWD core programs and projects for poverty reduction.
Specific Functions:
Plan, coordinate and institutionalize the implementation and effective complementation of SWD programs
and strategies;
Monitor, evaluate and document the implementation and results of convergence strategies based on a
common M & E framework and systems;
Develop training designs and programs in coordination with the IDG for institutional and capacity
development of the Bureau;
Develop institutional mechanisms in establishing and maintaining networks/ alliances at the national level to
support the implementation of SWD programs, projects and strategies;
Provide policy recommendations to PPG based on results of program monitoring and evaluation;
Provide knowledge resources/products to IDG;
Serve as secretariat to National Inter-Agency and/or Steering Committees lodged with the Bureau, where
DSWD is the chair.

http://www.dswd.gov.ph/about-us/organization-and-functions/

Poverty in the Philippines
Definition:"Refers to the condition, in which the basic needs of human beings are not being met and people
lack the necessary food, clothing, or shelter to survive, can be distinguished from relative poverty, which has
been defined as the inability of a citizen to participate fully in economic terms in the society in which he or
she lives."
Source: http://encyclopedia.farlex.com/poverty

Poverty in the Philippines
Lack of Vision & New Solutions
Since the new president was elected in 2010, reducing poverty in the Philippines has become an official
challenge/target of the new government led by Benigno Aquino. But the country seems to be struggling to
maintain the healthy growth of 2010 (above 7%), that remains important to keep the country on the right
path.

Challenges ahead
New anti-poverty program
With fighting poverty at the center of the new government's policy, the trendy type of social assistance
known as conditional cash transfer (CCT) has been the weapon of choice since 2008 in this war against
poverty in the Philippines. The CCT program provides cash to poor families as long as they fulfill their civic
duties by making sure they receive basic healthcare (e.g. vaccines) and send their kids to school the whole
year. Note that money is given exclusively to the female head of the family. It seems men have a tendency
to spend money in alcohol.
Since 2008, the conditional cash transfer program has been extended to over 2 million families, with a
budget of about $450m not that much considering the number of people concerned by this. With the help
of the international organizations including the World Bank, almost half of impoverished families are now
receiving CCTs.

Lack of infrastructure
This is one of the biggest problems that both prevents the economy from growing and makes poverty in the
Philippines even worse. Theres been a dire lack of investment in infrastructure, as much to invest in new
projects as to maintain existing infrastructure. Now its left to see whether the governments plan to use
public-private partnerships will work out for the better. By letting private investors build the infrastructure
(in exchange of them charging people a fee later on), the government avoids bearing the whole cost of
building infrastructure.
However, many Filipinos increasingly resist what they see as a basic investment that the government should
make for the country, rather than making people pay for using basic services such as bridges, roads or water
supply. Whats more, lack of accountability from the government also means that sometimes shady deals are
made between the government and a private company. On the other hand it also means that companies
arent too interested in investing in the Philippines because of the lack of transparency in government deals.

http://www.poverties.org/poverty-in-the-philippines.html
Causes and effects of poverty

Several issues like hunger, illness and thirst are both causes and effects - for instance: not having water
means you're poor, but being poor also means you can't afford water or food. In a sense, theyre a
characteristic of poverty in that they define poverty. Therefore, you should always look at both ends of the
problem - and you can refer to the article on the causes of poverty to complete the picture.
The poverty cycle

The effects of poverty are most often interrelated so that one problem hardly ever occurs alone. For instance,
bad sanitation makes it easier to spread around old and new diseases, and hunger and lack of water make
people more vulnerable to them.
Impoverished communities often suffer from discrimination and end up caught in cycles of poverty. Let's
find out just what this means concretely.

http://www.poverties.org/effects-of-poverty.html