4.1 Sector Based Client Populations
4.1 Sector Based Client Populations
4.1 Sector Based Client Populations
I. Introduction
Social work is widely considered one of the noblest professions which allow people to
make significant changes to society and is a worthy profession from a humanitarian
perspective. The primary aim of the social work profession is to improve human well-
being and assist in meeting the basic and complicated needs of all people, with a focus
in particular on the vulnerable, oppressed, and living in poverty. Consider a career in
social work if you want a job with significance, action, diversity, fulfillment, and a variety
of choices. Indeed, social work differs from other occupations as we focus on both the
individual and their surroundings. The social worker understands that humans are
social beings, these social creatures’ growth and development need the guidance of
nurturing and protection provided by others around them. It’s this interconnectedness
and interdependence of people in the social environment that is the foundation of
practice in social work as a profession. The environment a person lives in has a lot to
do with how a social worker may apply knowledge. Social workers deal with external
influences on a person's status and viewpoint. And we offer opportunities for
assessment and intervention to assist clients and communities in effectively coping
with their reality and, when necessary, changing it. In other words, social workers
assist clients in dealing with not only how they feel about a situation, but also what
they can do about it. Social workers support people of all ages and backgrounds
around the country in countless ways. The most well-known part of the social work
profession is directly offering services or therapy to clients. We empower people in
locating crucial resources and advising them on life-changing decisions. In addition,
we advocate for transformation in order to enhance social conditions.
Social workers work to alleviate people's suffering, work for social justice, and work to
improve people's lives and communities. When most people think of poverty reduction
and child welfare, they think of social workers. Well, many social workers conduct this
type of work, and we do a lot more. We can be found at hospitals, assisting patients
with acute and chronic illnesses. We provide treatment and community health facilities
and work to keep pupils in school. We assist inmates as they reintegrate into society
and provide rehabilitative services in drug and alcohol treatment facilities. In nursing
homes and homeless shelters, we provide outreach and long-term care. We provide
medical care to military personnel and veterans. Furthermore, we are first responders
in natural calamities.
Going through the lessons in Unit Three, we have just tackled the three levels of social
work: micro, macro and mezzo. At each level, social work professionals provide slightly
different services to target populations. At the micro level, social workers provide one-
on-one, family, and small-group services to people who are dealing with a variety of
social issues. These could include therapy for mental health issues, counseling for
substance abuse, and housing support. In mezzo-level social workers deal with groups
of people in settings like schools, jails, hospitals, or neighborhoods. They may help
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students who are having academic difficulties, deal with substance abuse recovery
with prisoners, or assist in coordinating care for patients who are admitted to hospitals
for long-term care. And lastly, macro-level social work encompasses policy-making,
research, and community-based initiatives. At this level of practice, social workers are
more likely to concentrate on and support efforts to address major societal problems
like homelessness, drug abuse, housing, and other concerns. A focus on the level of
interventions and the types of communities social workers want to serve is frequently
used to fine-tune their practice. For instance, a clinical social worker concentrates on
identifying, treating, and preventing mental, emotional, and behavioral problems. A
social worker, on the other hand, may focus on research and development for modest
or substantial community assistance programs.
Moreover, social workers also work in different sectors, we work with farmers,
fisherfolks, women, the elder, children, communities, and groups. These groups have
corresponding issues that social workers were involved with. Possessing the clarity of
mind and resources necessary to rise above one's circumstances is a necessary
component in overcoming adversity. The core of social work is identifying and
addressing resource inequities common among disadvantaged populations. Hence,
social service is one of the cornerstones and essential needs in modern times to
implement reforms and empower millions of marginalized groups or sectors such as
the aforementioned above and make them resourceful enough not just to be able to
manage their own lives but also to empower others and maintain the cycle of
empowerment.
Truly, the job of social workers has the power to change people's lives on an
individual level while also having an impact on the community as a whole, inspiring
and motivating future generations. It is now the time for society to focus on and give
attention to those sectors being neglected that deserved to be heard and helped.
This includes farmers, fisherfolks, women, peasants, laborers, OFW and migrant
workers, and urban poor.
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A. Farmers
More than half of the Philippines’ 100 million people live in rural areas, and more than
a third of them are poor. Agriculture is the primary source of income for poor rural
people, and the only source for many of the poorest households. Most of them depend
on subsistence farming and fishing for their livelihoods. Illiteracy, unemployment and
the incidence of poverty are generally higher among indigenous peoples and those
living in upland and coastal areas. Farmers are those individuals whose primary
occupation is farming and plant growing or animal production. Majority of them are
poor with low education, vulnerable to physical and economic risks and financially
stressed with zero saving or worse, indebtedness. And that is why farmers were
considered as a client population of social workers for a reason that they suffer a lot
from poverty.
Thus, farmers still suffer from neglect, discrimination, and insufficiency despite
having one of the greatest potentials for enhancing and nurturing the status of the
country as a whole and the many Filipino lives who are affected by this. Also, farmers
in the Philippines suffer from financial inadequacy due to many factors that lead them
to be reliant on predatory lending. In addition, one of the main constraints to
development that many farmers face is isolation, and a feeling that there is little they
can do to change their lives. Some farmers will have spent all their lives struggling in
difficult circumstances to provide for their families with little support or encouragement.
We can only start to realize agriculture and its farmers full potential once we
take the first step in solving the relevant and urgent issues circling the sector for
generations; hence, to be able that first step, we must first address the issues and
concerns themselves through a just and prudent lens.
Problems/ Issues faced by Farmers
High Input Cost
Many Filipino farmers are unable to increase their productivity because the
essential inputs were so expensive. Compounding this is the low palay prices that
could be expected after harvesting, which keeps many farmers in a perpetual state of
struggle and often in serious debt. There is a threat that we might be lacking in rice.
Actually, for them, the first reason of that is due to the low prices of palay (unmilled
rice) and high input costs. Because of this, the harvest is not good. There is no
motivation as well to harvest by reason of they earn so little. Precisely, rising input
prices raise the risk of further food shortages. As input prices rise, some farmers will
be unable to buy them and will choose to do without, or with less. In the absence of
other changes to farming practices, this lowers yields. This, in turn, reduces food
availability and farmer incomes.
Lack of Post-Harvest Facilities
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for most farmers to produce enough to turn in a profit, as these losses destroy a
significant portion of crops even before they make it to market. Additionally, the lack of
these basic amenities makes it difficult or even impossible for farmers to earn enough
to ensure a succeeding harvest without needing to take on significant loans.
In fact, much of the country’s shortfall in rice supply can be attributed to a lack of
postharvest facilities which could have prevented hundreds of thousands of metric tons
of harvested palay from rotting and going to waste.
Climate Change
Climate change has a devastating effect on agriculture. According to previous
studies, the Philippines suffered Php 463 billion in losses over the past ten years as a
result of extreme weather conditions, with the agriculture sector bearing the majority
of those losses at 62.7 percent, or Php 290 billion. Well, large decreases in rainfall and
longer drier periods will affect the amount of water in watersheds and dams which
provide irrigation services to farmers, especially those in rain-fed areas, thereby,
limiting agricultural production.
Land Rent
While land rent could be considered as another high-input cost, this is a
uniquely serious issue given its political nature and also because most Filipino farmers
do not own the land they cultivate. As a matter of fact, the first issue here is that Filipino
farmers are unable to purchase their own lands, which is one of the reasons why many
are put off from engaging in agriculture. The Philippines have a problem with unequal
distribution of land, according to the United States Agency for International
Development. About 2.9 million small farmers have an average farm size of 2 ha, while
13,681 landholders own up to 20,000 ha. Moreover, 70 percent of farmers in the
Philippines are landless.
Market Forces
Market forces indicate the importance of understanding the supply and demand
concept. These market forces influence the price of goods and services. Over the past
generation, the rice market has undergone a significant transformation. Filipino
farmers are being priced out of the market by cheaper imports from Vietnam and other
Asian nations, while domestic rice consumption has also been slowly declining over
the past few decades. As was already mentioned, the price of necessary inputs just
keeps going up. This has put an enormous strain on rice farmers everywhere.
COVID 19
At the onset of the crisis, food supply chains were shackled, imposing
restrictions on the movement of goods as well as people. These protection measures
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resulted in food price inflation, further increasing hunger and poverty incidences. Truly,
the COVID-19 pandemic decreased the level of agricultural production by 3.11 percent,
or 17.03 million tons due to a fall in agricultural farm labor that affected around 100.77
million individuals.
With these aforementioned challenges, there were programs and services
provided by some agencies and the government for those farmers.
Rice Farmers Financial Assistance Benefit
The Department of Agriculture is continuously distributing an amount of 5000
pesos of cash assistance to rice farmers that are under the RFFA or the Rice Farmers
Financial Assistance and the FSRF or the Financial Support to Rice Farmers.
Smallholder rice farmers who are impacted by instances of a severe decline in palay
farmgate prices are intended to receive cash subsidies under this program.
Additionally, this makes it easier for rice producers to get timely funding for the
purchase of necessary inputs. Last but not least, this expands farmers' opportunities
to raise output and profit. This is bounded by the law and benefits almost 1.2 million
rice farmers all throughout the country, mainly in the 57 rice-producing provinces. This
program goes hand in hand with ensuring adequate and accessible but also affordable
food for anybody that is affected by the ECQ or the Enhanced Community Quarantine.
CLAAP
It is well known that small-scale farmers produce the majority of the country's
agricultural output. Transporting products from fields to markets is one of the issues
that small-scale farmers encounter. To move their products across and eventually
reach their target market, these small-scale farmers used to rely on several
intermediaries. Farmers now have to travel further to reach their markets because of
this arrangement. This has a negative effect to the small-scale farmers as the
intermediaries tend to bargain down the prices of the products from the farmers but
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not reflect these price reductions to the consumers, thus the disconnection of the
farmers and their market gives them less than what they actually deserve.
The RORO Terminal System, also known as Roll-On Roll-Off, was first introduced in
the Philippines in 2003. In order to facilitate direct trade and make it simpler for farmers
to carry their goods, the RORO initiative strategically connected ports with main
roadways. The RORO program was launched in 2003 with a total of 36 routes; by
2016, that number has increased to 150, and the government has plans to add more.
The RORO system has enhanced the welfare of the farmers since it allows them to
earn more money without running the danger of raising consumer prices. There are
currently more than 100 roll-on roll-off routes across the nation.
High-Value Crop Roadmaps
The Philippine government also assists farmers by educating citizens about the
value of their work and the reasons why it is so important to look after and protect our
farmers. On its website, the Department of Agriculture offers many roadmaps for
highvalue crops that can be read. These roadmaps for high-value crops outline their
intentions for the upcoming year with the goal of improving the nation's agriculture. In
essence, these are guidelines and strategies for more advanced and creative crop
industries.
National Rice Awareness Month
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oceans, seas, lakes, and rivers. Many Filipinos have relied on fishing as a major source
of income for many years. It is one of humanity's earliest occupations. Fish production
by men and fish processing and marketing by women are two examples of the varied
responsibilities that each gender plays in this sector in the Philippines. For Filipinos,
fishing has significance from a cultural, economic, social, and ecological perspective.
They make major contributions to the Philippines' stability in terms of income,
employment, foreign exchange earnings, and nutrition. The sea is a large food basket
that contributes to the country's overall food security and supports the livelihood of
about 2 million people. Hence, the money that the fishermen earned from their fishing
endeavors was insufficient to support them since their daily expenses increased.
The PSA calculated that the poverty rate among Filipino fishermen was estimated to
be 26.2% in 2018, making them one of the basic industries with the highest rate.
Despite the efforts and the small fisherfolk's involvement in food security, the industry
continues to be one of the most vulnerable and underdeveloped in the nation.
Generally, this sector became a client population by the social worker because of they
suffer from poverty due to lack of financial resources gained from that kind of living
Problems/Issues faced by Fisherfolks
The people of the Philippines have benefited from the rich marine fisheries resource
over the years. Discover from the older fishermen how they culled their catch. Many
of them would say that fish sized with less than a foot rule will automatically be thrown
back into the water. Back then, they even have the luxury to choose the most palatable
fish among the wide variety of species thriving in a particular fishing ground. Moreover,
through time, technology has improved. More and more municipal fishing boats
became motorized. A lot of commercial fishing vessels became bigger and more
powerful. Fishing gears have evolved from simple tools to highly sophisticated fishing
gadgets that could sweep the bottom of the fishing grounds of almost everything,
including the precious coral reefs.
The Philippines' population has increased dramatically, which has led to a rise in the
need for necessities. The demand for fish, both for food consumption and other uses,
has increased correspondingly. Consequently, many of the households from the
coastal villages have made fishing as their source of livelihood. Thus, the increase in
the population coupled with the improved fishing technology brought stress to the
country’s marine and coastal ecosystem, thereby affecting the fishery resource.
Among the factors that affect the dwindling fishery resource, illegal fishing is a major
cause for the destruction of the corral beds in many of the country’s fishing grounds.
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Fish kills due to the disposal of solid wastes by the local populace and
discharges of chemical wastes by some manufacturing plants is also a serious concern
that puts the country’s fishery resource in danger. The incidence affected many of the
local populace giving them a number of health-related problems too. Another important
factor that contributes to the country’s fishery resource depletion is the siltation and
sedimentation of the water ecosystem due to deforestation, mining and other human
activities. Besides bringing in poisonous and toxic substances into the water, silts and
sediments lead to the shallowing of the riverbeds killing other aquatic organisms, which
are responsible for photosynthetic activities. Well, photosynthesis, aside from making
up the food chain process, supplies the oxygen requirement of fish as well as the rest
of the living organisms in the ecosystem.
Fisheries in the Philippines have been continuously affected by overfishing,
unabated illegal fishing activities, and a lack of political will to fully implement fisheries
laws and regulations. Further, it includes inadequate fisheries management plans,
where in theory, fisheries management plans are designed to include a variety of
mechanisms that balance the obligations of sustaining fish stocks and providing
opportunities for fishing, while achieving various biological, ecological, economic, and
social goals.
With the current situation mentioned above, all of those creates local social
problems, such as unemployment, poverty, lack of health and educational
opportunities, frustration, and social tensions between local populations losing their
traditional ways of income and livelihood.
Programs and Services provided by Government Agencies for Fishermen
Cash and Food Subsidy for Marginal Farmers and Fisherfolk (CFSMFF)
The Cash and Food Subsidy for Marginal Farmers and Fisherfolk or CFSMFF
aims to provide secure and direct cash and food assistance to eligible smallholder
farmers and fisherfolk affected by the pandemic through the Development Bank of the
Philippines (DBP). Therefore, three thousand pesos (Php 3,000) shall be given in the
form of cash and two thousand pesos (Php 2,000) via e-voucher for the purchase of
rice, chicken, and egg.
Such as an instance where there is a distribution of Cash and Food Subsidy for
Marginal Farmers and Fisherfolks (CFSMFF) in the town of Pagbilao held at the Center
for Economic Affairs Auditorium. Each beneficiary received P 3,000.00 Cash
Assistance and Food Assistance worth P 2,000.00 consisting of 25-kilo bags of rice,
dressed chicken and eggs. They were also given a unique reference code and an
EVoucher with a QR Code so they could encash it at an accredited pay-out center
where they had to show proof of identity for validation on the day of claiming.
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The Balik Sigla sa Ilog at Lawa (BASIL) Program is among the banner programs of
the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources. It aims to rehabilitate or restore the
physical conditions of rivers, lakes, dams, and reservoirs to replenish the country’s
inland waters with both indigenous and commercially available non-invasive fish
species and freshwater aquatic resources in support to biodiversity conservation in
order to alleviate poverty and achieve food sufficiency.
Over the years of its implementation, a significant increase in inland capture
fisheries production was observed in upland areas. In the province of Bukidnon, for
instance, capture fisheries production significantly improved from 109,676.29 kg in
2017 to 168,621.60 kg and 198,655.83 kg in 2018, and 2019, respectively, based on
the data by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA). Its effect to the upland
communities is indeed encouraging, making fresh fish available to them and ultimately
contributing to the improvement of their living conditions attributed to the increase of
their fish catch.
DSWD strengthens efforts to support local, fisherfolk, farmers
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Women’s rights are human rights. To the extent that women and girls do not enjoy
equal rights, their common human needs, and those of their families, will not be fully
met and their human potential will not be fully realized. Therefore, the social work
profession’s core commitment to human rights involves a commitment to protecting
and preserving the basic rights of all women and girls. Women of all ages and at all
stages of the life cycle deserve protection from discrimination in all forms, including
the elimination of all forms of gender-specific discrimination and violence.
This sector makes a client population for social workers for a reason that there were
disadvantaged women who have limited or no access to education, maternal and child
care, livelihood participation, and self-enhancement which prevent or determine their
development and full involvement in community affairs.
Typical Roles and Responsibilities of Social Workers Specializing in Woman’s
Advocacy
Case management is a particular skill set of social workers that uses established
protocols to identify clients in need of assistance and work with them over a period of
time to help them access the services they need to obtain stability and security. It is a
process practiced by social workers, that guides the delivery of social service support
to vulnerable individuals in need. In an instance like VAW or Violence against Women,
social workers handle this and work as case managers. Thus, given the volume of
VAW victims throughout the country and the mandate of the Department of Social
Welfare and Development, there is a need to strengthen the capacity of social workers
as case managers in responding to and handling clients in the most appropriate and
gender-sensitive manner. There is a need for these frontline service providers to
improve their knowledge of conducting case management and to enhance their skills
with regard to the application of the various methods and techniques in case
management with a gender perspective.
To be added, social workers are commonly involved in the delivery of women’s
health care, including maternal and child health, mental and behavioral health care
services, and sexual and reproductive health care, including the care and prevention
of HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases. Improving the health and
wellbeing of women requires attention to physical, mental, emotional, and social well-
being and the provision of gender-sensitive prevention, intervention, and long-term
care services.
Advocacy and support via the criminal justice system, protecting women who
are victims of domestic violence
Advocates worked to establish support services for individual women and participate
in coordinating community responses to domestic violence that included the criminal
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justice system so as to improve women's safety. Also, social workers have the
resources to get victims to a safe place, such as a women’s shelter. They may also be
able to provide legal resources and mental health care.
Furthermore, most criminal behavior stems from unmet social, emotional,
financial, psychiatric, or developmental needs. Criminal justice social worker works
with their clients to resolve those issues through coping skills training, life skills
development, case management, and home visits. Their daily tasks vary depending
on where within the system you’re assigned. If you work in a court diversion program
such as Drug Court, you would likely participate on an interdisciplinary team that
includes judges, attorneys, court advocates, probation and parole officers, and other
helping professionals. If you work in a correctional facility, you might run
psychoeducational groups that help inmates prepare for life after release by focusing
on developing anger management or coping skills group, job preparedness, and
handling addictions. It is also possible you might find yourself serving as an expert
witness in court or standing before a judge to advocate on your client’s behalf.
Community education to prevent human trafficking
Labor trafficking, such as those involved in hotel or farm employment, domestic
slavery, and sex trafficking are all examples of human trafficking. Social workers have
critical roles in both the prevention of this crime and the intervention of both individuals
who are victims and those who victimize. From a prevention perspective, social
workers can, for instance, speak with their clients about the warning signs of potential
exploitation and how to access help as well as provide therapeutic and other supports
to those who are at risk of victimizing others. They can assist in educating their larger
communities about the warning signs of victimizing behavior and victimization and get
involved in greater community efforts. And they can voice the social work perspective
to politicians and lawmakers who make choices about funding programs for those most
vulnerable to victimization such as the homeless, immigrants, and unprotected
children, and to victimizing such as marginalized groups, and the financially and
educationally underserved.
Management for antitrafficking programs
Social workers also have a role in the management of the anti-trafficking program.
Since we are advocates, we are and should be knowledgeable about human
trafficking. From the perspective of intervention, social workers can assist those who
have been affected by advocating, making psychoeducational and clinical
interventions, educating the public and service providers about the needs of those who
have been victimized, and advocating for the development of infrastructure and
funding for intervention and treatment programs.
D. Peasants
Peasants are still a big problem in the Philippines even if our country is
implementing agrarian reform laws for some time now. They are farmers who do not
have their own land to cultivate, even though they have been working with their
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landlord for a long period of time. Many of farmers in our nation are still classified as
peasants. Seven out of ten rural farmers in the Philippines do not own the land on
which they cultivate. More than 75% of what they harvest is frequently given to the
landlord, sustaining an indebted peasantry with farmers barely scraping by. Without a
clear land title, farmers find it exceedingly difficult to attain food security or to engage
in the long-term endeavor of cultivating healthy soils that absorb carbon from the
atmosphere. Peasants are being mistreated and dispossessed of their land rights
under this circumstance.
Problems/ Issues faced by Peasants
Many peasants are dealing with various challenges that create product delays,
resulting in a market scarcity throughout the country. Since the Philippines is a
thirdworld nation, our agricultural machinery or farming equipment rely on mechanical
or conventional technology; when compared to adjacent countries such as China and
India, our actual productivity is poor. According to The Philippine Statistics Authority
(PSA), the country's palay production for 2020 will be 19.44 million metric tons (MMT),
with actual production of 11.9 MMT from January to September and a projected harvest
of 7.54 MMT for the fourth quarter, based on standing crop as of November 1, 2020.
This data demonstrates why, due to a lack of government aid and development
activities, our country frequently imports rice from neighboring countries. It is
unfortunate that a country that consumes rice three times a day and has 113,548,675
Filipinos to feed with it is experiencing a scarcity or poor output as a result of our
government's negligence for progress.
• Criminalization of agrarian cases
Considering peasants are part of the impoverished sector in the Philippines, the
key concerns that every farmer faces are prosecution of agrarian cases and abusive
landlords. Since then, land distribution has been a major issue, and as a result,
peasant farmers are being charged with criminal offenses in order to be dismissed or
denied access to their property. Peasant farmers are being unjustly detained simply
for exercising their right to cultivate a little portion of the 200-hectare plot of land
nominally assigned to them by the state under the country's agrarian reform program.
Peasants enforce their rights and protect their communities' food security through
collective land cultivation, or bungkalan, while land monopoly persists in the
Philippines after decades of ostensible land reform. This injustice was remained
unresolved by the government, and the rights of every peasant were not put into effect,
or the laws that abided by them were not implemented.
• Abusive Land Owners
Land distribution has been a contentious subject in the Philippines for decades.
Population expansion and deterioration of fertile land have raised stress and conflicts
between smallholder farmers, powerful landlords, and the state in recent years. There
are also several cases of farmer peasants being abducted and being killed and until
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now are pending cases. Farmers in the Philippines have frequently appealed for solid
land rights and lobbied politicians to undertake agricultural reforms during the previous
few decades. Protesters, on the other hand, have frequently been seen as criminals,
and their demands have been met with violence. For example, in 1987, as farmers
marched for meaningful land reforms, security agents killed 13 protesters.
Landlordtenant relations have also been strained, with reports of landlords utilizing
aggressive measures to remove tenants with the assistance of local official authorities,
including the intimidation, detention, and killing of numerous farmers defending their
rights to land. As we can see, poverty, landlessness, and land grabs are all prevalent
and militarism are concrete evidences that civilization is degrading these peasants are
being treated unfairly. It is an example of evident truth that land reform legislation and
land reform initiatives allegedly designed to safeguard the wellbeing of the farmers and
assist them in improving their socioeconomic situation landowners and local elites
exploited their power to take areas of land are occupied by impoverished farmers. As
a result, Filipino farmers are severely marginalized and disempowered. As a result, it
is a standard approach for farmers should fight for the acknowledgement of
longstanding injustices claims and expectations, namely the possession of land can
claim as their own.
Filipino farmers are thought to be the best in the world the country's food
producers. They supply food for every Filipino household, yet they have nothing to
offer dine at their table. It is then critical that society should acknowledge the role,
rights, and advantages of farmers by providing them with what they genuinely deserve,
rather than merely as farmworkers, but as full-fledged Filipino citizen’s society.
• Lack of awareness of the government's various agriculture development
initiatives
Peasant farmers are often times being discriminated because of their social
status, and the government is aware about these issues that the Filipino peasants are
facing but does the projects and programs that they are doing is enough. Peasants
needed agricultural knowledge in order to enhance their farming techniques and hence
their production, as well as to be aware about current farming systems in order to
tackle obstacles that may occur in their farming operations. Farmers' knowledge of
agricultural information services requires additional development in agricultural
information access and systems, according to the study, which found that farmers had
minimal understanding of agricultural information services. Peasants require improved
seed types, knowledge on pest and disease control, and market information. The
Department of Agriculture (DA) should provide farming technology training to Peasant
Farmer-beneficiaries in order to improve their agricultural abilities, especially since
some of them did not complete their degrees. As a member of the vulnerable sectors,
the government should pay as much attention to these peasants as necessary.
• Inflation
Inflation is another factor that slows the production of commodities by peasant
farmers. Inflation affects everyone in the society, but it has the greatest impact on the
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poorest sectors, including peasants. According to a farmer association, excessive
inflation would destroy the agriculture sector owing to increases in raw materials,
resulting in a drop in demand as skyrocketing costs damage consumers' purchasing
power. This phenomena will reduce the circulation of products and have a significant
impact on peasants, as past research indicates that inflation adversely impacts
lowincome peasant farmers for a variety of reasons. Input price inflation causes cash
flow issues for farmers and emphasizes the importance of strong operational
management and cautious financial methods. Individual farmers may be able to
mitigate the effects of input price inflation by increasing production and reducing
expenses. With higherthan-average inflation rates, they spend more of their money on
basics such as food, transportation, and rent, leaving few options for expenditure cuts.
Domestic, supplyside restrictions are primarily to blame for the country's present high
inflation. Agriculture imports were delayed, and food supplies were insufficient.
Programs and Services provided Peasants
• Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Law of 1988 (Republic Act No. 6657)
It has been the dream of every farmer to own a piece of land so that they could
earn enough for their family. After all these years, the government through the
Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR), through land tenure improvement, agrarian
justice, and coordinated delivery of essential support services to client-beneficiaries.
has exerted efforts to help the peasant farmers acquire land for them to till and own.
However, implementations of such different programs have faced different hindrances
and problems. Corruption in the implementation of different programs, lack of technical
assistance that will help the peasants in processing different documents, accessibility
to financial assistance and the need to learn basic skills in financial management.
These are some of the difficulties and problems that the peasants are facing in their
effort in emancipating the bondage of the soil.
• Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP)
There are also some democratic movements that fight to help the voiceless
peasants and protect their rights and interests, such as the Kilusang Magbubukid ng
Pilipinas (KMP), which continues to consolidate and defend its gains and victories
while advancing the peasant struggle against class exploitation and national
oppression. They seek a genuine agrarian reform program and national
industrialization as the foundation for overall economic development. The KMP
remains the Philippines' greatest national democratic mass peasant organization. The
majority of Filipino peasants are still landless today, owing to the basic problem of
feudalism in the Philippines. Large landowners and foreign agribusiness dominate
enormous areas of land in the nation, forcing peasants to exploitative conditions such
as land rent, enslavement, usury, and exorbitant production costs, among other things.
Previous and present false land reform plans implemented by the Philippine
government are all anti-peasant and serve exclusively the interests of landowners and
foreign monopoly businesses. The KMP is at the forefront of the Filipino peasants'
struggle for genuine land reform, defending the national democratic interests of
millions of rural poor in the countryside.
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• IFAD/ International Fund For Agriculture and Development
Another is IFAD, or the International Fund for Agriculture and Development, a
United Nations specialized agency tasked with assisting disadvantaged rural women
and men in improving their food security and nutrition, increasing their earnings, and
strengthening their resilience. Moreover, the International Fund for Agricultural
Development's (IFAD) goal is to boost agricultural development and lives in
underdeveloped nations. Its initiatives and programs are implemented in remote and
environmentally vulnerable areas, such as least developed nations and remote island
developing states. The International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) assists
vulnerable groups in rural areas, such as smallholder farmers, pastoralists, foresters,
fishers, and small-scale entrepreneurs, by providing access to weather information,
disaster preparedness, social learning, and technology transfer, which enables
farmers to feed growing populations and increase the climate resilience of rural farming
systems.
• AMIHAN
AMIHAN is a peasant women's organization and federation of peasant women's
rights groups that push for real agricultural reform, national modernization, and the
abolition of all forms of exploitation and discrimination, notably against rural women.
AMIHAN was founded in response to the need to offer a collective voice to peasant
women, the Philippines' most numerous and discriminated-against group of women.
AMIHAN combines the repressed and exploited classes and works for the Filipino
people's rights and aspirations. It preserves and merges its triumphs while furthering
the fight against exploitation and tyranny.It fights for the empowerment of peasant and
other rural women as part of the social reform movement.
• The Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps)
Finally, this program is for everyone in need of financial support, including
peasants. The Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps), implemented by the
Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), is the government's
nationwide poverty reduction policy. Its major goal is to provide social help and social
development to persons who are severely destitute and in acute need of money. Social
workers are in charge of distributing financial aid to those living in poverty. Social
workers in their respective communities are disseminating this curriculum. This
initiative is well-known in the Philippines, where 4,227,773 families have benefited
from it. The 4Ps method is a poverty-reduction strategy that offers payments to
severely poor households in order to enhance their health, nutrition, and education,
particularly for children. 4Ps has two goals, social assistance to offer monetary aid to
the poor and short-term poverty alleviation to ease their needs.
The social problem of inequality in acquiring farmland and low agricultural
outputs should be addressed by social interventions like peasant empowerment
through organizations, seminars, training, financial assistance and acquiring different
skills. In modern times, technical farming is a very important skill that the farmers
should have learned in facing the fast changing system of society. Social workers as
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an enabler should provide change with the client, especially peasant farmers since
they are part of the people deprived with their rights, and we are an advocate of social
equality. Social workers should focus on what its client need and what is right for them
E. Laborers
The Labor sector is one of the most important sectors in a society. These are
the people who work in order that the system of life moves, or the economy of a society
will work and function. In our country, the Labor sector is facing some challenges and
problems. The labor force in our country is so immense but the opportunity to have
decent and sustainable work or jobs is so scarce. The biggest employer in our country
is the Philippine government. However, the government cannot cater to all the labor
force in our country, it needs the help of the private sector to create more work
opportunities.
The labor issue comprises the challenges experienced by wage-earners and
employers who began to decrease pay for a variety of reasons such as greater
technology, a desire for cheaper expenses, or the desire to remain in business. By the
turn of the century, machines were gaining a deeper presence in the economy, which
pushed down prices. Machines were making the manufacturing process cheaper,
which meant that salaries accounted for a larger portion of expenditures, and when
situations were exceptionally severe, it made sense to reduce pay in order to stay in
business. People become practically disposable as a result of the depersonalization
of the manufacturing process. Workers were not fully laid off, but there were major
employment losses.
Problems/ Issues faced by Laborers
• Unemployment and Underemployment
The term "unemployment" is frequently misunderstood because it includes
people who are waiting to return to work after being discharged but excludes people
who have stopped looking for work in the last four weeks for a variety of reasons such
as leaving work to pursue higher education, retirement, disability, and personal issues.
Those who are not actively looking for employment yet desire to work are not
considered jobless. Unemployment has an influence on both employees and the
national economy, and it can have a cascading effect unemployment generates
financial difficulty for employees, affecting their families, relationships, and
communities. The Labor Force Survey put the Philippines' unemployment rate in
January 2022 at 6.4 percent; this proportion has impacted our country's social and
economic development, as well as the way of life of many Filipinos.
Underemployment is a major issue in the Philippines, with 6.67 million jobless
Filipinos registered. Underemployment in the Philippines is linked to factors such as
overpopulation, an excess of labor force in some industries, and an inability to accept
suitable work. Our society believes that we have a degree, but unfortunately, our
society cannot give a sufficient employment for the degree that we worked hard to
obtain. These situations are prevalent in the Philippines, similar example getting a
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colleague degree for four years and working as a sales lady in a mall for a minimum
wage of 10,000. This is completely unjust, and it leads to migration among our
countrymen.
• Higher labor cost
Since increased labor costs drive employers to recruit fewer employees, this
issue has resulted in a high level of unemployment. Labor-cost-rise laws can either
increase overall employment or increase hours per worker, but not both. Employees
in the Philippines are demanding greater salaries owing to inflation and the
consequences of the epidemic. Regrettably the circulation of money in our nation is
not as rapid as we believe it is, there are certain firm that cannot cope up instantly with
these changes and instead of employing more people for greater man strength they
start lowering their employment. As a result, normal laborers have less opportunities
to obtain suitable employment. Exactly like in Region 8, the minimum salary for a
laborer is 375 per day, and if an employer decides to open a business and recruit
laborers, the firm will only hire a small number of people due to the high cost of labor.
This results in unemployment for others. The higher the cost of labor, the fewer people
will be employed. This is truly happening all over the world; corporations in America
have relocated their operations to China owing to their country's high labor costs in
comparison to China. As a result, there are many more work prospects in China and a
considerably larger labor force.
• Contractualization
Contractualization is one of the most serious issues confronting our country
right now. Under this type of work structure, you do not have a permanent employment;
you can only work for a firm for five to six months. Many Filipinos are affected since
they do not receive what they deserve. Under this arrangement, the worker's
employment contract expires before the sixth month, and the employee becomes a
normal worker, entitled to a variety of health, security, and insurance benefits
mandated by law. Contractualization is a contentious labor practice in the Philippines.
Contractualization has compromised workers' rights to organize and negotiate
collectively for greater pay, economic benefits, social security, better working
conditions, and better terms of employment. Workers have also been obliged to
tolerate unfair labor practices and breaches of their political rights.
• Surplus Labor Force
As a result, a labor surplus arises in the sense that a significant segment of the
labor force contributes less to output than is required, and its marginal product falls
below its bargained-for pay. Due to a lack of employment chances, the number of
workers or employees is expanding in the Philippines, but job prospects remain few. A
large number of workers are excess as a result of insufficient demand in the primary,
secondary, and tertiary sectors. Because of the high rate of population increase, a
large number of labor forces are constantly being added to the current labor force,
resulting in a large surplus in the labor market. Programs and Services for Laborers
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• The Department of Labor and Employment or DOLE
The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) assists the country's over
40 million people who work in the formal and informal economies, as well as the
commercial and public sectors. A Filipino government agency tasked for promoting the
social and economic well-being of employees, regulating labor and employment
conditions, and defending workers' rights. DOLE's purpose is to promote gainful
employment, develop human resources, protect and promote worker welfare, and
preserve industrial harmony. The Department of Labor and Employment also conducts
labor and employment research and development in order to track the growth and
statistics of our country's employment situation.
• SHIELD
This initiative, run by the Department of Social Welfare Development (DSWD),
attempts to prevent abusive child labor in the country. The child labor victims were
offered comprehensive and rapid community interventions through the SHIELD
program, including educational aid from the DSWD and case referrals to other
government organizations. Under the SHIELD initiative, program implementers from
the various DSWD-Field Offices are employing multi-layered techniques to combat
child labor, particularly its most heinous forms. In 2022, the Department of Social
Welfare and Development (DSWD) identified at least 1,400 child labor victims and
survivors and was able to offer them with services and interventions that met their
requirements.
According to the DSWD, the goal is to assist finally abolish child labor in the
country as part of its commitment to protecting children's well-being and future. The
DSWD ensured that the agency's battle against child labor, as well as other child
abuses, would be tackled effectively and appropriately through the SHIELD against
Child Labor projects.
• Social Amelioration Program (SAP)
The Social Amelioration Program (SAP) The SAP is a government project that
gives temporary financial help to low-income households that have been negatively
effected by the crisis, similar to a pandemic. The initiative attempts to assist these
households in coping with rising living costs and income loss as a result of the crisis.
The continuous delivery of food and non-food necessities to the most vulnerable
individuals and families, including stranded employees and homeless people in the
Local Government Unit. This program was widely used during the quarantine period in
the Philippines; the program provides a monthly cash subsidy of P5,000 to P8,000 to
low-income households for two months, depending on the region of residency. As this
program is in the Local Government Unit (LGU), the distribution is handled by social
workers who identify their clients through data gathering across the whole local
government.
• TUPAD or Tulong Panghanapbuhay sa Ating Disadvantaged/Displaced
Workers
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TUPAD, or Tulong Panghanapbuhay sa Ating Disadvantaged/Displaced Workers, is a
community-based package of assistance that provides displaced workers,
underemployed workers, and seasonal workers with emergency employment for a
minimum of 10 days and a maximum of 30 days, depending on the nature of the work.
This is a program from the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE). Based on
what I've observed in our neighborhood, this program has helped a lot of individuals
since it is simple to apply for.
The issue of laborers and employment should be handled soon; as our globe changes
to more contemporary technologies, our country must likewise keep up. Providing a
sustainable employment or programs to an individual can improve their way of life in
society; as a change agent, social workers should always prioritize those who are in
need in order for them to function well in the society.
F. OFW and Migrant Worker
The migrant workers or the Overseas Filipino Workers is one of the main
employment opportunities of the Filipino people. Many have tried their luck in working
foreign countries in order to seek greener pasture and improve their living conditions.
Millions of Filipino workers are now working abroad and sending their precious money
or earnings to their families that somehow help our economy to function and grow.
However, Migrant Workers have encountered many problems and challenges in
working abroad. Here are some of the most serious problems, difficulties and
challenges that our migrant workers experienced in working abroad.
Problems/Issues
• Racial Discrimination
Many of our migrant workers has experienced racial discrimination. They were
deprived with their basic rights as a worker because they came from other country.
The migrant workers are treated like slaves or low class humans.
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The migrants workers experienced under paid or even the employer not paying
the salaries and wages. They even confiscate the passport of the OFW.
• Malnutrition and Crime
Most of the migrant workers who work as a Domestic Helpers, have suffered from
this kind of maltreatment. They experienced hunger, over worked, physical abuse and
deprivation in basic needs. Some of them were accused of crime and incarcerated in
their workplace.
• Fear of Disease and Infections
Migrants workers have acquired diseases due to unfit working place. Some have
develop respiratory diseases due pollution and poor sanitation. In some cases, migrant
workers working as domestic helpers has acquired sexually transmitted diseases
because some of them were rape and even used as sex slave. With these situation,
migrant workers are now afraid in going home because they may spread some
infectious diseases to their relatives.
These horrible situations that our fellow countrymen, the migrant workers, have
encountered in working abroad, should also be given priority attention to our
government. The flight of fellow Filipino working in other country is not good as it should
be. We considered our migrant workers as our "Modern Hero" and they deserve the
full support and assistance from our government.
In these regards, our government with all the resources available, has responded
to the sad flight of our migrant workers by creating agencies and offices, develop
programs that could address the needs of our migrant workers and enacting a law that
will protect the rights of the OFW.
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• THE MIGRANT WORKERS AND OVERSEAS FILIPINO WORKERS ACT
OF 1995 (Rep. Act 8042)
This law mandated the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD)
to deploy social workers in different countries in order to provide the Migrant Workers
or Overseas Filipino Workers with social welfare services.
G. Urban Poor
All throughout majority of developing Asia, urbanization has been accompanied
with slums and shelter deprivation, informality, decline of living circumstances, and
increased hazards owing to climate change and exclusionary urban structures. Unlike
rural poverty, urban poverty is complex and multidimensional, extending beyond a lack
of income or consumption to include the poor's vulnerability as a result of Inadequate
access to land and housing economic and livelihood sources, health and education
facilities, social security networks, and the ability to speak up and be heard. The rate
of urbanization in the Philippines has accelerated significantly during the last decade,
notably in Greater Manila. This has been followed by an increase in the number of
urban poor, estimated at 14 million, the spread of slums and squatter communities,
and the attendant issues of congestion, a lack of social services, filthy conditions, and
starvation.
The Philippines intends to decrease poverty to 14% by 2022. Without the safety
net of social protection programs, children living in poverty confront a slew of threats
to their life and development. In this sort of circumstance, social workers are the ones
in mind when it comes to assisting these disadvantaged settlers; as prospective social
workers, keep in mind that this type of sector contains the most vulnerable individuals.
The majority of the urban poor come from rural and move to the city in search of a
better life, or they are misguided people who struggle in their everyday lives. These
folks require the most care and assistance from the government in order to live a
decent life.
Problems/Issues
In these rate people living in urban areas who encounter this type of living
everyday has change their way of living. Due to the limited space in the city
overcrowded housing is a primary issue with regard to the urban poor. The number of
residents exceeds the capacity of the available housing space, whether measured in
rooms, bedrooms, or floor area, resulting in negative physical and mental health
impacts. Due to restricted space, urban poor settle for this form of living, which can
have a negative mental and physical impact. These can lead to improper disposal of
waste and malnutrition that can lead to a lot of health issues. These individuals face
everyday challenges like as substandard housing, a lack of essential amenities such
as power and water, and high overcrowding, which frequently leads to infectious
disease outbreaks. They cannot afford the health treatment that rich city inhabitants
can, and they do not benefit from health programs provided by non-governmental
organizations (NGOs) or governments in the same way that rural communities can. In
short, they fall between the gaps, living in the health-care hinterlands. With this way
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of living this can be all connected to more issues, due to overcrowding this may results
to lack of security in ones place. In this settlement one of the primary concern is your
security, the crime rate in the cities are much higher than the rural areas. Base on the
research conducted people who live in poverty in the city are more prone for
recruitment as vigilantes and syndicates.
Programs and Services provided by Government Agencies for Urban Poor
• Listahanan (National Household Targeting System for Poverty Reduction)
Listahanan, also known as the National Household Targeting System for
Poverty Reduction (NHTS-PR), is a data management system that determines who
and where the poor reside throughout the country. Listahanan is eventually beneficial
to the underprivileged. Government agencies and organizations that provide social
protection programs and services use the database of impoverished families. Because
resources are limited in this targeting approach, using these resources on initiatives
that attempt to eliminate poverty will have less impact and will be wasted if they do not
reach the poor who need them the most. A standardized set of criteria for The
identification of the poor would allow for the convergence and complementation of
social protection measures in tackling the many facets of poverty.
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IV. Conclusion
It was indeed a great opportunity for those sectors being neglected and having
long-term issues that are still a problem for them because of social workers. As
mentioned, there were seven sectors discussed namely the farmers, fisherfolks,
women, peasants, laborers, OFW and migrant workers, and urban poor. Farmers and
fisherfolks were considered marginalized sectors despite of their contributions to our
country’s economy. There were problems and issues being faced by them, hence, it
needed much attention to solve them. And this is where the government, agencies or
social workers intervene through providing and implementing programs and services
allocated for them. It may not totally eradicate the burden it caused but as much as
possible, there were alternatives or ways in reducing the negative effect and problems
these sectors were facing.
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V. References
Bautista, A. G. M., & Tamayo, V. T. (2020, October 1). Life Challenges of Overseas
Filipino Workers. OAlib; Scientific Research Publishing.
https://doi.org/10.4236/oalib.1106854
Beldad, K. (2022, August 9). Government’s Programs for the Welfare of Farmers and
Consumers. Bria Homes. https://www.bria.com.ph/articles/governments-programsfor-
the-welfare-of-farmers-and-consumers/
Department of Agriculture. (2020, April 23). Farmers, fishers to get social amelioration
from DA, DSWD. Official Portal of the Department of Agriculture.
https://www.da.gov.ph/farmers-fishers-to-get-social-amelioration-from-da-dswd/
DSWD cash-for-work aid targets small farmers - Philippines. (2011, July 19).
ReliefWeb. https://reliefweb.int/report/philippines/dswd-cash-work-aid-targets-
smallfarmers
Galvez, S. (2010, November 14). Need for post-harvest facilities cited. Philstar.com.
https://www.philstar.com/business/agriculture/2010/11/14/629457/need-post-
harvestfacilities-cited
Gamboa, R. (2019, May 27). More challenges in the labor sector. Philstar.com.
https://www.philstar.com/business/2019/05/28/1921357/more-challenges-laborsector
https://mb.com.ph/2022/11/07/ocean-organization-says-philippine-municipal-
watersare-overfished/
Jinn Torrejos. (2020, September 20). FIELD PRACTICE WITH WOMEN [Video].
YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D-M_Xen7RSk
Lubang, S. a. A. (2020, July 16). Towards Liberation from Debts of Filipino Farmers.
FFTC Agricultural Policy Platform (FFTC-AP). https://ap.fftc.org.tw/article/64
O. (2021, August 2). Balik Pinay Balik Hanapbuhay Livelihood Program for Filipina
OFWs. OWWA Member. https://owwamember.com/balik-pinay-program/
O. (2022b, July 4). DOLE – Department of Labor and Employment Philippines –
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Purpose, Functions and Responsibilities. OWWA Member.
https://owwamember.com/dole-department-of-labor-and-employment/
Pendon, L. (2022, September 2). DA-BFAR continues to support fishery sector through
livelihood programs, services - F&B Report. F&B Report Magazine
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