La Trinidad, Benguet – One hundred forty five (145) student beneficiaries of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program participated in the first school-based Youth Development Session (YDS) and camp at the Benguet National High School-Main, La Trinidad, Benguet on March 29-31.
With the theme “Millennial Legends: Empowering Youth for a Better Tomorrow,” the YDS is a modular session for the Pantawid Pamilya highschool beneficiaries that aims to motivate the students to finish their education. Students undergo sessions that enhance their life skills and knowledge to help them cope with challenges as adolescents.
“We are hopeful that the different activities during the three-day camp inspired and empowered our student beneficiaries”, said Orlyn Hangdaan, Social Welfare Officer, DSWD-CAR.
Topics discussed during the three-day activity included the Role of Youth in the Community, Family Foundation, Understanding True Love, Mental Health Awareness/Stress and Anger Management, Life of an Adolescent, Career Pathing, Critical Decision Making, and Moral Recovery.
“We are expecting that after this activity, the delegates will realize the importance of family… because one of the attributors why students fail in school is family issues. We try to let them understand why such issues are happening in the family. We need to motivate these students how to survive intricate situations like stress, anger, and depression. Also, we want to educate these students on teenage pregnancy and premarital sex as one of the prevailing issues of the youth today,” said Police Corporal Joshua Daligan of the Regional Mobile Force Battalion (RMFB) 15.
Evelyn Cayat, a Grade 12 student, shared “nabuild ti camaraderie ken unity me through diyay team building activities..ken naadal me met ti ikasta nga ag set ti goals para iti future mi. Nafeel ken naappreciate mi dagiyay presence ken sacrifices ti resource speakers, guardians me ken dagiyay amin nga nag conduct ditoy mga activity (Our camaraderie and unity was built through the team building activities. We also learned how to set goals for our future. We also felt and we appreciate the presence and sacrifices of the resource speakers, guardians, and all those who conducted this activity).”
The YDS is a joint activity of the DSWD, RMFB 15 of the Police Regional Office-Cordillera (PROCOR), Department of Education (DepEd), Local Government Unit- La Trinidad, and Benguet National High School. A Memorandum of Agreement was forged last September 2018 to formalize the YDS partnership between RMFB-PROCOR, DepEd, and DSWD.
Implemented by the DSWD, Pantawid Pamilya also known as the Conditional Cash Transfer Program in the Philippines monitors children 0-18 years old. The household beneficiaries receive Php300 and Php500 cash grants if student beneficiaries have at least 85% monthly school attendance in elementary and high school. Although the YDS is not a program condition to receive the cash grant, the activity is implemented to guide and develop the youth beneficiaries to be responsible and productive members of their family and the community.
Meanwhile, the program currently monitors 65, 217 high school students in the Cordillera. #DSWD-CAR, SOCIAL MARKETING UNIT, Marlo Abyado
