DSWD launches "Paglaom"

By Dominic I. Sanchez

Friday 17th of February 2012

ZAMBOANGA CITY, 17 Feb. ( PIA 9) - - The Department of Social Welfare and Development has recently launched Paglaom (Hope), a book highlighting the success of the beneficiaries of its poverty-alleviation programs during the agency’s 61st anniversary celebrations held recently in one of the local hotels here.

Paglaom is a collection of five unique narrative stories, some co-written by the beneficiaries of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program, KALAHI-CIDSS Project and the SEA-K sustainable livelihood (Tatsulo Convergence Strategy), themselves.

Collectively, the book brings into perspective the hardships and difficulties of the beneficiaries – it illustrates instances in their everyday lives, instances that no person who has ever set foot in an economically-challenged municipality may have an idea of.

The book tells the story of families who at times have to sleep on empty stomachs, and endure poverty in so many different forms, because of the lack of economic opportunities and access to even the most essential community infrastructure and social services.

"But," Regional Director Teodulo Romo, Jr. said, “the book isn’t all about hardships. In fact, in Paglaom, the beneficiaries themselves share their successes – how they were empowered to make simple dreams come true with the DSWD’s programs.”

Paglaom will be available free for download before the end of February at the DSWD website in PDF format. (JPA/DIS/DSWD/ PIA- ZBST)