PHINMA UI, DSWD-6 partner for 4Ps students

By Joseph Bernard A. Marzan

PHINMA University of Iloilo on Tuesday, April 21, partnered with the Department of Social Welfare and Development-Western Visayas to expand learning opportunities for incoming students from families under the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program, or 4Ps.

The university and the regional office signed a memorandum of agreement allowing DSWD-6 to refer incoming freshmen from 4Ps families to PHINMA UI, where they may qualify for the university’s Hawak Kamay Scholarship Program.

Under the scholarship program, which was launched across PHINMA Education Network schools in 2009, qualified students may receive 25% to 80% in grants.

The program also does not require qualifying examinations or maintaining grades.

The new agreement is part of the university’s “Kaupod sa Pagpadayon” campaign, which encourages students to continue and complete their college studies despite economic and social challenges.

Other programs under the campaign include a transportation allowance for 200 students living outside the city, free breakfast for early-bird students, discounts at boarding houses near the university, and other forms of support.

PHINMA UI Marketing Supervisor Raymart Escopel said the university’s support programs aim to help students finish tertiary education.

“Our goal here is actually the completion and success [of our students]. It’s not just about the grades, it’s about how to prepare them to be ready for their future jobs,” Escopel said.

DSWD-6 data as of December 2025 indicated a total of 58,638 Grade 12 students from 4Ps families across the region who may qualify under PHINMA UI’s program for Academic Year 2026-2027.

The 4Ps is the national poverty reduction and human capital investment program that provides conditional cash transfers to poor households to support children’s health, nutrition, and education.

With a projected 30,000 to 40,000 freshmen students for the incoming academic year, University Comptroller Ruth Job Salamanca said the Hawak Kamay scholarships have no cap.

This means all 58,638 students may be accommodated under the scholarship program, subject to the availability of university facilities.

“If we were to house the whole 58,000, we might have to rent more classrooms for the excess, but we are pushing the construction team to finish, since our Blanco II [Hall] is almost finished this school year, so that’s going to add another 35 classrooms,” Salamanca said.