MANILA: More than PHP101 million in aid has been provided by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) to families affected by the severe drought caused by the El Niño phenomenon. Assistant Secretary for Disaster Response Management Group and spokesperson Irene Dumlao said in a news release on Friday that the aid consists mostly of Family Food Packs (FFPs) because those fulfill the immediate needs. Aside from the distributed aid, the agency had also prepositioned 178,400 FFPs worth more than PHP121.6 million across the country, ready for distribution as of May 3. 'The DSWD's National Resource and Logistics Management Bureau is also ensuring the replenishment and availability of food and non-food items for resource augmentation to DSWD Field Offices as the need arises,' she said. DSWD records showed that 737,901 families or 3,095,107 individuals from 4,058 villages in all regions, except Metro Manila, are affected by the dry spell. Meanwhile, local government units across the country have pr ovided assistance amounting to PHP6.2 million while other partners shelled out PHP5.4 million in aid, she added. The DSWD maintains more than PHP3.2 billion worth of stockpiles of relief supplies and standby funds ready to be used for disaster operations. (PNA) Source: Philippines News Agency