In fulfilment to the mandate of the Philippine Plan for Gender- Responsive Development or PPGD, the Municipal Links (MLs) of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program together with the Municipal Social Welfare and Development Officers (MSWDOs) and Municipal Local Government Officers (MLGOOs) from the provinces of Cagayan, Isabela, Quirino and Nueva Vizcaya assemble for the series of Unified Gender and Development (GAD) trainings held earlier this month.

The training aims to generate support from the Local Government Units in strengthening the implementation of GAD-related laws, as well as identifying the current gender-responsive efforts and practices available in the cities and municipalities of the region.

It also emphasized on the creation of a complaint desk in every barangay to ensure immediate response on addressing issues of poverty, violence against women, among others.

The Unified GAD Training is vital in promoting a gender-responsive community and gender mainstreaming in every LGU and to the programs of the Department of Social Welfare and Development specifically the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program. Through the collaborative efforts of the stakeholders, this is necessary in uplifting the level of well-being of the beneficiaries.

The training was conducted in three batches in Tuguegarao City, Cagayan; Santiago City, Isabela; and in Solano, Nueva Vizcaya, respectively.

Pantawid Pamilya is a human-development and rights-based program of the national government and is being implemented by DSWD. The program invests in the health and education of poor Filipino children aged 0-18 years old by providing cash grants in exchange of compliance to certain conditionalities.

As of now, there is a total of 97, 129 househod beneficiaries ### By MARICEL B. ASEJO, Information Officer II- Pantawid Pamilya