MANILA — The government’s unified 911 emergency hotline now receives around 500 calls daily concerning violence against women and children (VAWC), the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) said.

At a DILG Kapihan forum, Emergency 911 National Office executive director Francis Fajardo said call handling efficiency has improved to 98%. “But now those calls have really increased. In one year, it is 5,000. Monthly, probably approximately 500 now, from January to December. That is our latest data,” he said.

Fajardo added that the hotline handles around 30,000 emergency calls daily nationwide for various concerns. Cases of ongoing physical abuse are immediately referred to the police, while non-urgent cases are directed to barangay VAWC desks.

Meanwhile, the DILG’s National Barangay Operations Office reported that nearly all barangays now have functional VAWC desks, with 97% or 40,831 barangays meeting compliance standards. Assistant division chief Lovesita Daumar said VAWC officers are trained to provide initial response to victims and coordinate with the Philippine National Police.

The forum was held ahead of the National Women’s Month in March.