To enhance the “great potential” of the Philippine government’s pro-poor project Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps), President Arroyo has announced her plan to increase the 4Ps beneficiaries from 700,000 families at present to one million families in 2010.

During a recent visit to Brazil, Mrs. Arroyo learned of the success of a similar conditional cash transfer (CCT) program being implemented in the country called the Bolsa Familia Program.

Social Welfare and Development Secretary Esperanza Cabral, who was part of the Philippine delegation to Brazil, said President Arroyo was very keen in expanding the 4Ps program in the country after their visit to Brazil.

Cabral said, in a press conference, that if the Philippine government will implement the expansion program in 2010, P15 billion is needed to reach out to one million poor Filipinos. President Arroyo has approved a budget of P10 billion for 4Ps implementation this year.

Cabral pointed out that learning from Brazil’s experience in implementing a CCT program is a good opportunity, which can also be applied in the Philippines.

Cabral said the 4Ps is patterned after the Latin America CCT program, the largest of which is Bolsa Familia.

The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), the implementing agency of the program, started 4Ps in 2007.

The 4Ps is a social development and poverty reduction strategy that provides cash grants of as much as P1,400 a month to poor households in some of the country’s poorest areas to improve the people’s health, nutrition, and education particularly of children below 14 years old provided they comply with certain conditions.

Cabral explained that both the Bolsa Familia and the 4Ps strictly enforce a set of conditions designed to increase the chances of attaining the goal of poverty reduction.