THOUSANDS of Metro Manila residents are keen on abandoning their city dreams by enrolling in the government’s Balik Probinsiya program, according to the National Housing Authority (NHA).
NHA General Manager Marcelino P. Escalada, Jr., the concurrent Balik Probinsiya, Bagong Pag-Asa (BP2) Council executive director, said after just 10 days, the BP2 has over 60,000 enrolees composed of both individuals and families.
If they qualify, Escalada said they will receive an “average and immediate (assistance for) individuals (worth) P25,000 (and) families (worth) P150,000.” These endowments also include non-cash benefits that will allow them to make a new start in their home provinces.
“This is an option, this is an opportunity waiting for (residents of Metro Manila) to go back to the province for good,” Escalada said.
“(To those who are interested), the opportunity has come and we will make this a window of opportunity (for them),” he added.
At the end of the NHA briefing on Tuesday, the application counter of the Balik Probinsya dashboard showed there were 60,254 online and on-site applications.
This was composed of 32,951 applications of those travelling alone and 27,303 applications of those travelling with family.
At this rate and given the minimum estimates made by the NHA, BusinessMirror estimates that the government can spend around P823.775 million for individuals and P4.095 billion for families.
These estimates could still increase given the expected number of applications in the coming days. Previously, Escalada said the government expects the number of applicants to reach a million over a period of six months.
On Tuesday alone, at the start of the 2-hour NHA briefing, the number of online and on-site applications was at 59,756. This jumped by 498 online applications by the end of the briefing.
Included in the cash benefits is around P3,000 to P35,000 in transportation assistance; livelihood assistance of P5,000 to as much as P50,000; transitory family support of around P17,000; and rental subsidy good for six to 12 months for those who said they did not have a home to go back to.
Housing units
Escalada said in a period of six to 12 months, it is hoped that families could find permanent housing for themselves or their families.
The NHA committed to build mass houses in provinces where many of the enrolees would be located, but could not yet determine the number of houses they need to build and how much funding this will require.
This, Escalada said, will be determined in 2021 and 2022. He stressed that since housing is a “basic service,” the national government has to finance it and no loan will be secured to build these permanent residential units.
However, once these units are built, Escalada said they will not be free. “As a general rule, walang libreng pabahay (no free housing).”
He said if families will avail themselves of these housing units, they need to pay P500 per month once they start occupying them.
Currently, Escalada said housing units built by NHA have a standard floor area of 28 square meters and a lot area of 40 square meters. Each unit costs around P450,000 to P530,000.
The 6- to 12-month period given to families, Escalada said, would also allow the NHA to either build homes for these enrolees or help these individuals and/or families make their own arrangements via the Key Shelter Agencies (KSA) such as the Pag-Ibig Fund.
The NHA GM said that while some may find the size of housing units small or would not be comfortable for them, he said “comfort” is a relative term.
The sizes of the units, Escalada said, are standard for the NHA and will allow the government to charge a relatively small sum for these units, particularly for Informal Settler Families.
He said if individuals and/or families have more means or are employed, they can always turn to Pag-Ibig or private institutions.
Profile of enrolees
Based on the data obtained by NHA, the top provinces where applicants want to go back to are Leyte, Samar, Negros Occidental, Northern Samar, Eastern Samar, Southern Leyte, Camarines Sur, Zamboanga del Norte, Bohol, and Pangasinan.
Escalada said many of the applicants were those affected by Typhoon Yolanda, particularly those included in the Yolanda Corridor. For those in Mindanao, many of the applicants come from conflict areas such as Lanao where the Marawi Siege occurred.
“Most of the enrolees right now in the Balik probinsiya, Bagong pag-asa, are also victims of calamities, either man-made or natural calamities,” Escalada said.
Majority of applicants are between the ages of 26 and 35 years old, followed by those aged between 18 and 25 years old. More than half or 54.4 percent of enrolees are males.
The top technical skills they want to pursue in their provinces are Agri-businesses, agriculture, food/bars, Other Skills, and construction. Majority of them are high school graduates and college graduates.
Image credits: Nonie Reyes
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