The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) on Sunday confirmed that the Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situation (AICS) will serve the clients of the now-defunded Ayuda sa Kapos ang Kita Program (AKAP) with a budget allocation of P63.8 billion for 2026.

In a Facebook post, Director Edwin Morata of the DSWD Crisis Intervention Program (CIP) said there is sufficient AICS budget to serve former AKAP clients, including the issuance of guarantee letters (GLs) for qualified beneficiaries.

“These 3.9 million [people] will be part of the AICS this year. Of course, they are all also undergoing a crisis. For example, they are taking medicines, they’ve been hospitalized. So if they are removed, they might say there will be nowhere else to go. But rest assured, AICS is still there,” Morata said, as quoted in an interview with DZMM’s “Serbisyong DSWD for Every Juan.”

The AKAP was implemented as a two-year program in 2024 and assisted 3.9 million Filipinos in 2025 alone.

Morata said beneficiaries in need previously covered by the AKAP can be accommodated under the AICS.

For 2025, AKAP disbursed P24 billion nationwide, targeting low-income earners. The program covered medical and burial assistance, transportation and food assistance, including the issuance of GLs.

“We partnered it under AICS to ensure that the right services are being provided to the right person, and for the right purpose,” Morata said.

“When we tried to understand some of the people, or maybe this is a culture to some Filipinos, when you give them money, they fail to use it for the right purpose. Sometimes there are bills they need to settle, and what remains would be all for their needs,” Morata said.