The Manila City Government in partnership with GCash launched the Social Amelioration Program for students last January 28, 2020 at Universidad de Manila.
Made possible through City Ordinance Nos. 8568 and 8564, the Social Amelioration Program grants a monthly allowance of Php 1,000.00 for qualified PLM and UDM students, and Php 500.00 for qualified senior high school students.
To be qualified, the students must be residents and registered voters (or children of registered voters) of Manila City. Senior high school students should also have good academic standing to be eligible for the monthly allowance.
The City Government allotted P1,818,785,300 in 2020 for its social amelioration program, which is set to benefit 301,092 residents starting January 2020. The monthly student allowances are distributed via GCash cash cards.
“Not a single centavo spent on GCash”
Mayor Domagoso remarked that “The City of Manila did not spend a single centavo for GCash”. He added that the City Government is “grateful to GCash for the trust they gave Manilans” so that the “underprivileged” could receive their monthly allowance.
GCash Chief Executive Officer Anthony Thomas shared that they partnered with the Manila City Government in hopes of “enabling students of PLM, UDM, and other schools to embrace cashless payment”.
Thomas added that the beneficiaries could use GCash as a savings account which gives a higher interest rate compared to banks. “You also get access to a savings account. That gives you a very high interest rate of 4.1% per year, which is many times what you get at other institutions. You get that at no minimum balance, so any little money you can put aside and help save for the future is something that we want to encourage as well,” he said.
The Social Amelioration Program launch was led by Manila City Mayor Francisco “Isko Moreno” Domogaso, PLM President Emmanuel Leyco, UDM president Maria Lourdes Tiquia, and Division of City Schools-Manila Superintendent Maria Magdalena Lim.
Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila is a premiere university that has consistently garnered a 100% passing rate in licensure exams. Since 1965, it has produced competent and socially responsible graduates who have contributed to nation-building. For more info, visit plm.edu.ph (Office of the Vice President for Public Affairs).