MARAWI CITY, Lanao del Sur (PIA)--The once war-torn city is now making significant progress in improving the well-being of its children, thanks to the Urban Child Protection and Participation Project (UCPPP) of the World Vision Philippines.

Now in its second year, the project has benefitted 6,559 children and caregivers in its covered areas since its inception in October 2021.

Adonis Casinillo, project manager for Marawi and Cotabato, said in the first year of its implementation, 1,837 children received education support while 238 children who are falling behind in school received remedial support. 154 children also completed values-based life skills and peace education activities through the Empowering Children as Peacebuilders or ECaP.

Moreover, 1,342 out-of-school children have attended accelerated learning programs in selected communities of which 222 are under the Basic Literacy Program, 445 elementary, and 675 junior high school.

Casinillo also shared that 263 out-of-school children were integrated into formal schools during the first year of the project. Just recently, 25 out-of-school youth completed the tile setting program and underwent an assessment conducted by the Ministry of Basic, Higher, and Technical Education-Technical Education and Skills Development.

In terms of child protection, Casinillo said the project has trained 648 service providers on child protection, reporting and referrals while 320 community members consisting of parents, caregivers, and teachers underwent seminars on how to identify and prevent children from being harmed from particular forms of violence. 95 girls and boys were trained in protection-related life skills too.

In addition, UCPPP has established five functional Barangay Child Protection Committees (BCPC) and five school-based Child Protection Committees. It also assisted in the crafting/updating of the disaster risk reduction plan and contingency plan of its covered barangays including that of the City Schools Division. Various disaster preparedness equipment were also provided to school partners including the City Schools Division.

UCPPP likewise included interventions focusing on improving access to health and nutrition services. Accordingly, 328 parents and caregivers participated in counseling sessions on child care, proper feeding and hygiene and sanitation practices through the Go Baby Go session while another 203 participated in vegetable production and backyard production.

Health centers in Barangays Malimono, Rapasun, Tuca Ambolong, and Cadayonan 1 and 2 including the City Health Office were further equipped with health and nutrition tools to improve their nutrition services and maternal, newborn, and child health (MNCH) programs.

Meanwhile, World Vision Philippines Operations Manager Beth Delgado hopes that the gains of the project will be sustained and further strengthened as they eye to expand the coverage of the project to benefit more marginalized children and communities.

The second year of the UCPPP will run from October 2022 to September 2023. (APB/PIA-10/Lanao del Sur)