DOLE’s DAP allocation benefited 30,552 unemployed youth and improved the lives of vulnerable workers –Baldoz

Secretary of the Department of Labor and Employment Rosalinda Dimapilis-Baldoz and President Benigno Aquino III. Photo courtesy of Malacanang Photo Bureau.

MANILA — The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) said on Thursday that it was granted P143.330 million between 2012 and 2013 through the Disbursement Acceleration Program (DAP) concept.

In a statement, DOLE Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz said the allocation given by the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) was used in five programs that benefited 30,552 unemployed youth and vulnerable workers, specifically those displaced by calamities and emergencies; accelerated implementation of the new labor laws compliance program, a DOLE reform; and enhanced labor market information delivery.

“Between 21 December 2012 and 21 June 2013, an amount of P143.330 million on top of the DOLE regular budget was allocated to the DOLE through the DAP concept, specifically for the: (1) Special Program for the Employment of Students (SPES), P27.217 million; (2) Government Internship Program (GIP), P11.393 million; (3) Emergency Employment under the Tulong Panghanapbuhay Para sa Ating Displaced Workers (TUPAD), P47 million; (4) Production of Labor Market Information (LMI) infrastructure (Job Search Kiosks), P13.720 million; and (5) Acquisition of IT communication devices for the new Labor Law Compliance Program, P44 million,” she explained.

Baldoz added, “We have spent the augmentation money as intended, under the specific line-item appropriation of the General Appropriations Act of 2012, or R.A. 10155.”

She reported that they had spent P134.126 million, or a utilization rate of 99 percent; P1.463 million has been returned to the National Treasury; while P7.741 million continues to be implemented.

“We have already submitted accomplishment reports on the funds given to us under the DAP concept. The accomplishment reports contain the names and addresses of the beneficiaries, and in compliance with the requirements of Section 93 of the General Appropriations Act of 2013 (R.A. 10352), these are posted under Item 5 in the Transparency Seal in the DOLE website. For the regions, the names of the beneficiaries are posted in their respective websites,” the DOLE chief added.

She noted that the funds received through the DAP concept were implemented through direct administration by the DOLE.

“We did not use any conduit, private organizations, or Napoles-style foundations. In areas where individual beneficiaries express desire to be in a group, we organized them into community-based enterprises,” Baldoz explained.