DSWD suspends government internship program for 2020

RELIEF. Sangguniang Kabataan ng Barangay Maybunga council members, together with youth volunteers, help give relief goods to residents in the barangay on May 26. File photo by Martin Louise Tungol

MANILA, Philippines – The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) on Monday, June 15, suspended its Government Internship Program (GIP) 2020 to protect the youth from the threat of the coronavirus.

The GIP is a component of the Kabataan 2000 program of the government, which was developed to allow in-school and out-of-school youth to experience working in various government agencies. The program aims to provide experience that would help if they wish to eventually join the public service workforce.

The decision was made in line with the declaration of the state of public health emergency in the country.

"DSWD upholds the right to participation and self-development of the youth, but it is also deeply concerned with the health of the GIP participants. The postponement will ensure the safety and protection of the department's personnel and the youth interns, who are among the vulnerable groups," DSWD said in a press release.

The GIP prioritizes youth beneficiaries of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps), the youth included in the DSWD's Listahanan, which is a record of who and where the most poor and vulnerable families are in the country.

Under the program, the DSWD provides the youth participants with a daily stipend for 30 days amounting to 75% of the regional wage rate.

Even under a modified general community quarantine – the most relaxed form of quarantine – the government disallows people under the age of 21 from leaving their homes if not for work or essential tasks. (READ: ECQ, MECQ, GCQ, MGCQ: Who can go where?)

As of Sunday, June 14, the Philippines has 25,930 confirmed coronavirus cases, with 1,088 deaths and 5,954 recoveries. – Rappler.com