As lead agency of the government’s disaster response pillar, the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) is ready to provide augmentation support to localities along the track of tropical storm Dante.
DSWD has total standby resources of ₱1.105 billion, of which ₱225 million is allocated as standby funds, ₱113 million worth of 222,382 family food packs, and ₱766 million for other food and non-food items.
The DSWD Central Office (CO) has a total amount of ₱181.2 million available standby funds for its response and early recovery operations during disasters and calamities. These resources are strategically prepositioned in 17 regional warehouses and 34 DSWD warehouses across the country, especially in the regions forecast to be affected by Dante, for immediate augmentation to local government units (LGUs) that need assistance.
Furthermore, the Department operates by twinning and reinforcement systems. Twinning is where the identified twin Field Office (FO) shall immediately provide augmentation as needed, while Reinforcement is where the DSWD CO and other regions with appropriate capacity are on standby to provide assistance upon depletion of resources of affected Field Offices (FO).
Meanwhile, in terms of its mandate on Camp Coordination and Camp Management and the Protection of the Internally Displaced, DSWD has eight established evacuation centers in Regions I, II, III, IV-A, V, VI, VIII, and CARAGA.
It also has an available 2,602 Quick Response Team members in its 17 FOs and the CO ready for deployment as the need arises. Given the current COVID-19 pandemic, however, deployment of DSWD staff for the provision of support services is in accordance with the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) Guidelines and Health and Safety Protocols.
The Department is closely coordinating with concerned agencies and LGUs to ensure an efficient and well-coordinated response operation for those who will be affected by the weather disturbance.
DSWD also urges the public to remain vigilant and to follow the warning advisories of their local chief executives to avoid any untoward incidents due to the effects of the tropical storm. (DSWD) – jlo
