The purpose of the Core Shelter Assistance Program of the Department of Social Welfare and Development was validated when Typhoon “Yolanda” ravaged the northern part of Iloilo province.

The housing units provided the beneficiaries more than just roofs above their heads; they also gave them with comfort and relief that even during a “super typhoon,” they are in a safe place.

Of the three core shelter projects of DSWD in the town of Ajuy, which was one of the areas badly hit by the recent typhoon, only one site was affected with minor damage on the roofs and windows of a few houses.

Recipients of the CSAP used to live in areas prone to flooding and in places that are often hit by calamities.

In Barangay Lanjagan, where 120 new housing units were recently finished and turned over to the beneficiaries, families were seen on their normal routine a day after Typhoon Yolanda caused massive destruction in the northern towns.

CSAP is a rehabilitation program which aims to provide structurally strong shelter units that can withstand 180-220 kph wind velocity to families whose houses were totally destroyed by natural and man-made calamities and who have no capacity to build or construct their own units.

The project aims to reduce the number of homeless families every year by providing a structurally strong shelter and at the same time develop and promote the value of self-reliance among the beneficiaries and the community.

The Mines and Geosciences Bureau issues a certification that the location of the project is safe before the start of its implementation. The DSWD provides funds for implementation of the project with a counterpart from the local government unit./DSWD/Wenna Berondo-Bendol