Child Fund International Tacloban Office head Hubert Par enumerates in Express It At The Park the various initiatives that the organization has been dishing out to Yolanda survivors especially the children, efforts such as psycho-social interventions that they believe are of equal import as those materials requirements of the survivors. (by EI NAZARENO-BALLESTEROS)
Child Fund International Tacloban Office head Hubert Par enumerates in Express It At The Park the various initiatives that the organization has been dishing out to Yolanda survivors especially the children, efforts such as psycho-social interventions that they believe are of equal import as those materials requirements of the survivors.
(by EI NAZARENO-BALLESTEROS)

TACLOBAN CITY- A top official of the International Labor Organization (ILO) revealed that they are planning to provide social and health protections to workers employed under its emergency program. The ILO provided work assistance to victims of supertyphoon Yolanda that hit Eastern Visayas more than six months ago. Jonathan James Price, chief technical adviser of ILO-Manila, informed in an interview that the agency has started with the second phase of their assistance which is to provide sustainable livelihood in order for the workers to have the means to sustain their membership and pay their contributions regularly in these social protection programs. He underscored the importance of workers being placed under the Social Security System and Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (Philhealth) in order for them to enjoy the rights and benefits that correspond to their being members in good standing. For now Price added, the ILO is targeting to involve over 20,000 beneficiaries in areas affected by Yolanda, giving it the great challenge to generate the needed sum from donations made by foreign states. The ILO has set up offices in Tacloban, Ormoc, Northern Cebu, Negros Occidental, Coron, and Bohol in the aftermath of Yolanda. Price pointed out that the introduction of the social protection element of the work is to let the beneficiaries understand their rights and their benefits from the SSS and Philhealth if they are able to make contributions, which received a favorable response from the workers. “The beneficiaries really appreciate this opportunity because it really opens their eyes to their rights for that kind of protection. If their income is not that stable, they are not able to continue making finances quite steadily that they want to, “Price said. From an emergency employment that lasted only about four months, especially starting the months after Yolanda hit the Visayas on November 8, 2013, the ILO has expanded its work assistance to provide the workers new sources of income and new skills. The ILO is integrating trainings into the program working closely with the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority on this aspect. Price reported that as of December last year, the ILO has provided emergency employment to about 5,000 people as immediate response. The ILO targets an additional 10,500 workers under their emergency employment program. (EILEEN NAZARENO-BALLESTEROS)

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