The pros and cons of cash grants

CHEERS TO ABS-CBN’s Cheche Lazaro Presents for its in-depth review of the state of the government’s human development plan called Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program or 4Ps. (Sunday’s Best, ABS-CBN 2, July 21 ; ABS-CBN News Channel/ANC, July 22)

4Ps is a government priority program that provides conditional cash grants to poor families for healthcare, nutrition, family development, and education of children from birth up to 14 years old.

The program aims to address the short term financial needs of beneficiaries and help households break from the intergenerational poverty cycle.

The special report discussed the background and objectives of the 4Ps. It focused on the beneficiaries’ experience, critics’ reservations, and experts’ opinion on the administration’s flagship poverty alleviation program.

While the report showed the benefits of the program as a social assistance and development scheme, it also discussed its problems, among them its limited reach.

The special also related the 4Ps to the country’s economic condition and how it affects the national budget distribution.