Social payback: DSWD grants P15.5M SEA-K Carmen loans

SHARING was the by-word of the day as the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD-7) Regional Office granted to 83 members of Carmen Self Employment Assistance Kabayan (SEA-K) a soft loan amounting to P1.55M, February 14. Reports furnished to this paper detail that DSWD-7 Belma Rago personally handed the soft loan resident members of Poblacion Sur, La Libertad, Tamboan, Nueva Vida Norte and El Progreso organizations after having satisfactorily shown management capacity for an earlier loan.

Carmen information Officer Severina Palingcod bared that the soft loan is a follow-on program for beneficiaries who have graduated from level one. The project, one of the leading poverty alleviation program of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo to cope with the vision of job creation.

SEA-K is a capability building program which aims to enhance the socio- economic skills of poor families through the organization of community-based associations for entrepreneurial development.
It has two components, the SEA-K Level I (SEA-Kaunlaran) and the SEA-K Level II (SEA-Kabayan).

SEA-K Level I association members (usually 15 to an association) are trained in business management and livelihood skills and provided interest-free capital assistance of P5T per person, is to be paid back in two years. The assistance is channeled through the association, which lends out to members who the community based credit program. Repayment, or amortization, is done weekly through the SEA-K association.

For instance, the weekly amortization of a P5T loan is composed of the mandatory P50 as weekly installment on the principal, P25 as savings, P5 for operational expenses; and a voluntary mutual aid fund of P10. The soft loan is interest free.

The Carmen assistance happened after local officials led by Mayor Pedro Budiongan and MSWD Carmelita Tecson dovetailed the town's poverty alleviation into the national government's program. Over this, beneficiaries have openly accepted the loan calling it a payback for the people, now being realized through more jobs, infrastructure, education and better services. The surging confidence in the Philippine economy has also been one of the driving forces allowing the people to go to the track of excellence and productivity and continuing the flow of economic benefits to the social levels, economists agree

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