Journeying With Communities Toward Self-sufficiency
The DSWD Sustainable Livelihood Program is a strategy to spread prosperity among communities in the Philippines. We encourage Listahanan-identified poor families, especially Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program members, to engage in resource-based and market-driven community micro-enterprises, or explore employment opportunities.
Each participant is given the opportunity to choose between the Micro-enterprise Development track or the Employment Facilitation track. We facilitate assistance to participants from organizing them into groups, until planning and monitoring their livelihood projects to ensure that they are self-sustaining. We also partner with the public and private sectors as service providers and subject-matter experts on financial literacy, resource mapping, market scanning, and technical and vocational skills training, financial literacy and credit assistance, and employment opportunities among others.
Participants in the Micro-enterprise Development track are encouraged to pool their resources together as groups known as Self-employment Assistance-Kaunlaran Associations (SKA). These will help them establish economically viable enterprises and maximize resources within their organized groups.
Attaining self-sustaining micro-enterprises and gainful employment enhances their mobility to access to basic social services to improve their standard of living. They become economically fit to invest in health and education, and other basic needs. Along with other human development and poverty reduction programs, we aim to break the inter-generational cycle of poverty.
Prosperity For All, Creating Shared Value
Sustainability
The DSWD-Sustainable Livelihood Program designs its initiatives to yield long-lasting results for individuals and communities, as well as our partners. We aim to (1) create products and generate services that consumers have a natural, constant demand for; (2) harness self-sustaining communities; and (3) encourage holistic and impactful social responsibility programs among partners.
Capabilities Building & Integration
We partner with public and private institutions to create integrated training programs that enhance the skills of communities, expand their opportunities, and teach them to believe in their own capabilities. We envision communities that can independently improve the quality of their own lives.
Mutual Cooperation
Through social innovations co-designed with our stakeholders, we form mutually beneficial relationships: those which are both good for business and which make participants partners in achieving a sustainable inclusive growth.
Empowered Communities & Businesses
We hone families who are independent, proud of what they do, of their heritage, and of their products, and believe that their actions benefit the community at large. We also enjoin internal and external stakeholders to commit a lasting contribution to society.
Disaster Resiliency
Securing quality livelihood and/or jobs for individuals from vulnerable and marginalized families includes ensuring that they are more resilient to economic, political and environmental shocks. We also develop strategies for asset building and protection.