Some 8,390 Recovering Persons Who Used Drugs (RPWUDs) have been reintegrated into their families and communities since 2021 through the Department of Social Welfare and Development's (DSWD) Yakap Bayan Program (YBP), an agency official said on Thursday, 25 April.
"The YBP is a holistic intervention of the DSWD which adopts human-rights based approaches to assist RPWUDs, their families, and communities toward recovery," DSWD Assistant Secretary for Disaster Response Management Group (DRMG) and spokesperson Irene Dumlao said.
The DSWD spokesperson said the program provided RPWUDs with aftercare and eventual social reintegration services, such as relapse prevention sessions, counseling sessions, health and fitness therapy, spiritual interventions, and skills training, among others, to improve their well-being and social functioning.
To date, 133 local government units (LGUs) across the country have partnered with the DSWD for the replication of the YBP in their respective localities.
"An increase in the number of implementing LGUs is expected within the year since the YBP has been institutionalized in January as a regular program of the DSWD through its Operations Group," Assistant Secretary Dumlao pointed out.
Dumlao also noted that the replication of the YBP in the local level will contribute to the drug-demand reduction campaign of the national government.
"The RPWUDs in their locality will have the opportunity to better themselves and become productive members of their community, and even become local leaders," the spokesperson said.
To ensure the effectiveness, responsiveness, efficiency, and sustainability in addressing the needs of RPWUDs, the DSWD has partnered with the Dangerous Drugs Board (DDB) and began the rollout of YBP training with LGUs in the different regions in the country.
"We want to make sure that LGUs have advanced knowledge and skill sets to implement the program and provide necessary assistance to RPWUDs," she said.
The training will be initially conducted in Regions I (Ilocos), II (Cagayan Valley), VI (Western Visayas), XI (Davao), and Caraga from April to June 2024.
