MANILA - The Philippines is set to obtain a $405-million loan from the World Bank to help improve the government's social welfare programs.

In a statement released Wednesday, the World Bank said the amount will strengthen the capacity of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) as a social protection agency, finance part of the government's conditional cash transfer (CCT) program, and establish a national household targeting system to identify the poor in social protection programs.

All these initiatives are part of the government's Social Welfare and Development Reform Project (SWDRP), which aims to reduce poverty in 376,000 households in the country's poorest provinces and municipalities.

According to World Bank Country Director Bert Hofman, supporting the country's social welfare reform agenda is central to the multilateral lender's country assistance strategy (CAS) in the Philippines.

Specifically, he said the CCT will augment incomes of beneficiary households by about 20%, helping them recover from the effects of the global economic crisis.

"Reducing the vulnerability of poor households to sudden economic difficulties and improving their access to education and health services are among the most tangible ways to make growth work for the poor," Hofman said.

For her part, DSWD Secretary Esperanza Cabral said the World Bank's technical and financial support is crucial in delivering social welfare programs to the country's poor and marginalized people.

"An effective household targeting system and the CCT program will serve as the main pillars of a coherent and well-targeted social protection system in the Philippines," Cabral said.