On March 29, the government launched the Social Pension Program to help the indigent elderly provide for their daily subsistence and medical needs. The Social Pension Program provides PHP 500 (USD 11.59) a month (distributed on a quarterly basis) to those aged 60 or older who are frail, sick, disabled, and without any permanent source of income (pension, family support, and so forth). The benefit will be subject to legislative review every 2 years.

There are currently an estimated 6.3 million Filipinos aged 60 or older. Because of funding constraints, program guidelines prioritize eligibility by age, and currently only those aged 77 or older may benefit from the program. A national survey has identified more than 145 thousand citizens aged 77 or older-roughly 14 per cent of that age group-as eligible to receive the social pension. The government earmarked PHP 870 million (USD 20 million) for the program in 2011 and proposed expanding the program to reach over 1 million indigent elderly citizens in 2012.

The public pay-as-you-go retirement system in the Philippines includes mandatory social insurance for private-sector workers, covering workers up to age 60 who earn at least PHP 1,000 (USD 23.17) per month, and separate systems for government employees and military personnel. There are also options for voluntary retirement savings.

Source: : "Social Pension for Elders under Fire," Bohol Chronicle, May 2, 2011; "95 Senior Citizens Benefit from Social Pension Program," Philippine Information Agency, May 10, 2011; "2,000 Metro Seniors to Get DSWD Pension This Month," Tempo, May 17, 2011; "DBM Releases P435.5M Social Pension for Indigent Senior Citizens," Sun Star Bacolod, June 8, 2011.

Implementation date: 03.2011