MANILA — The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) has announced plans to establish regional offices dedicated to the reintegration of former members of non-state armed groups and rebels, bolstered by a PHP500 million funding allocation from the Department of Budget and Management (DBM).
According to Philippines News Agency, Secretary Rex Gatchalian outlined the new initiative to members of the House Committee on Appropriations during a budget hearing. The move is part of a broader effort to enhance programs and services aimed at peace and development, focusing particularly on the case management of decommissioned combatants and former rebels. “So, our good news, we talked to the DBM, and this budget season, gave us a PHP500 million allocation to jumpstart our regional program management office for the inclusive Sustainable Peace and Special Concerns cluster,” Gatchalian stated during the hearing on August 21.
The DSWD’s approach includes not only financial payouts but also a comprehensive aftercare case management mechanism designed to monitor and support the sustained deradicalization and reintegration of returnees into their communities. Gatchalian emphasized the need for effective case management, noting gaps in the existing mechanisms that were highlighted during a Senate hearing.
The pilot phase of these offices will begin in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, aiming to ensure thorough monitoring and support for decommissioned individuals. “What is the mandate of these regional offices that we are going to create? We will pilot it in Bangsamoro Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao areas, to ensure that those decommissioned [ex-rebels] who were already paid are getting monitored,” explained Gatchalian.
Plans include deploying 400 social workers across three regional offices in Mindanao, who will exclusively manage cases involving rebel returnees. The initiative will assess the effectiveness of the support provided and may expand nationwide based on the results of the pilot. “It’s a pilot, but once we see the progress in it as it pans out, because we know that the case management for former combatants is quite different, we will now use the experience there and expand it all throughout the country,” Gatchalian added.
This initiative is part of the DSWD’s Peace and Development Buong Bansa Mapayapa (PDBBM) program, which seeks to provide long-term support and welfare improvement for former combatants and members of various non-state groups.