Perceived impact of conditional cash transfer programs on education, health, and nutrition in South Cotabato, Philippines
Jun Rex H. Halique & Prescillano D. Campado
Abstract
The conditional cash transfer program, a crucial initiative aimed at breaking the intergenerational cycle of poverty in the Philippines, invests in the education, health, and nutrition of the financially challenged sector of society. This study assesses the impact of the program's implementation on education, health, and nutrition and the challenges the policy implementers and beneficiaries face during its execution. The program's implementation was evaluated through a survey among the beneficiaries and policy implementers, and the problems encountered were examined through a focus group discussion. A triangulation method was employed to comprehensively understand the agreement of results from policy implementers, beneficiaries, and government reports. This paper asserts that the Philippine government's conditional cash transfer program positively impacts the education and health programs, thereby protecting the next generation of human capital. However, it also highlights the need to assess the program's impact on nutrition further. There is no direct evidence that the program effectively addresses stunting. There is also no relationship between the program implementation and the problems encountered. The primary issue beneficiaries face is the timely release of cash grants. This study offers valuable insights on how the national government can improve the program design and implementation especially the release of cash grants. While this study affirms the program’s effectiveness, there is a need to study the status of the students who have graduated from the program.
Keywords
public administration, conditional cash transfer, poverty, health program utilization, human capital, stunting
Author information & Contribution
Jun Rex H. Halique. Corresponding author. Master in Public Administration, Assistant Professor IV, Mindanao State University – General Santos. Email: junrex.halique@msugensan.edu.ph
Prescillano D. Campado. Doctor of Philosophy in Philippine Studies, Professor VI (retd.), Mindanao State University – General Santos. Email: prescillano.campado@msugensan.edu.ph
“All authors equally contributed to the conception, design, preparation, data gathering and analysis, and writing of the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.”
Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).
Funding
This work was not supported by any funding.
Institutional Review Board Statement
The ethical review and approval were waived for this study.
Data and Materials Availability
AI Declaration
AI tools were not used in writing this paper.
Notes
This paper was presented at the 2nd National Research Congress on October 4-5, 2024, at Palacio Del Sur, Zamboanga City, Philippines.
Acknowledgement
The researchers would like to express their gratitude to the people and organizations that made this research project successful, specifically to the Department of Social Works and Development Region XII, the Municipal Social and Development Office, the municipal links, parent leaders, and Lake Sebu South Cotabato beneficiaries. Our sincerest gratitude to Prof. Francis N. Reginio and Dr. Maria Aurora G. Victoriano for their invaluable expertise and insights, which significantly improved the paper.
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Cite this article:
Halique, J.R.H. & Campado, P.D. (2025). Perceived impact of conditional cash transfer programs on education, health, and nutrition in South Cotabato, Philippines. International Review of Social Sciences Research, 5(2), 78-101. https://doi.org/10.53378/irssr.353188
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