Cordillera records over 50,000 poor households as of Sept. 2023

Baguio City, Philippines - Over 50, 000 households in Cordillera were labeled poor in 2023, based on the Listahanan 3 of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD).

The Listahanan 3, formally known as the National Household Targeting System for Poverty Reduction (NHTS-PR), is an information management system that establishes a database of poor households in the country.

As mandated under Executive Order 867 (EO 867), the system will serve as a basis for identifying potential beneficiaries for different social protection programs and services nationwide, and DSWD was designated as the implementing agency.

Out of the 272,544 assessed households in Cordillera, 50,611 were identified as ‘poor’ as of September 2023, Listahanan Information Officer Joanna Marie Caponpon-Apostol reported recently.

Top three provinces that listed the highest numbers of poor households were Abra with 14,135, followed by Mt. Province with 10,723; and Benguet with 7,283.

As for cities and municipalities, top ten were Paracelis with 3,802, followed by Bauko with 2,101; Kabugao-1,781; Bagued-1,637; Conner- 1,546; Pinukpuk-1,429; City of Tabuk- 1,283; La Paz- 1,117; Tadian-1,081; and Lagangilang-990.

Meanwhile, Apostol explained that the listed poor households will be eligible for DSWD’s programs and services such as the sustainable livelihood program, protective services for individuals and families in difficult circumstances, among others.

Additionally, the private sector can also provide aid for them by signing a Memorandum of Agreement with various government agencies.