PASIG CITY -- In celebration of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Month 2021, Education Secretary Leonor Magtolis Briones emphasized the importance of the regional organization’s role in achieving the country’s development goals, especially in education.

The education chief highlighted the importance of ASEAN during the flag-raising activity of the Department for the first week of August to kick off DepEd’s ASEAN Month celebration with the theme: “Celebrating Unity: Recognizing ASEAN’s Collaborative Efforts in the Education Sector.”

“This should not only be a one-month activity but a continuing series of activities so that we will not forget that we are in the ASEAN region, that we have neighbors, that we have friends who can give comfort as well as information, tips on survival, and various approaches to more effective learning,” Secretary Briones said.

DepEd, through the International Cooperation Office (ICO), formally started the celebration of the ASEAN Month by including the singing of the ASEAN Anthem every flag-raising ceremony for the whole month of August across all government agencies in the country. This is under Proclamation No. 282 dated July 31, 2018, signed by President Rodrigo Duterte.

“We should continually share knowledge, communicate with people, inform our learners, as well as our teachers and officials about our partnerships, the levels of cooperation that we have attained, and how we worked together not just as one isolated country but always together with other ASEAN countries,” she added.

As part of the celebration, the Department launched a month-long CreASEAN: Art-Making Contest on August 2. It has also spearheaded an online information campaign about ASEAN facts, which began on July 19 and will continue until August 2021.

“It should be a continuing activity so our learners and our citizens will not forget that we are not a state unto ourselves, and that we are a part of ASEAN,” Secretary Briones added.

Meanwhile, the ASEAN Day Celebrations will be held in Pasig and Mandaluyong. A forum will also be conducted to discuss International Partnerships and Commitments in Basic Education (ASEAN-Focused) while the Webinar Series Session 7 of the ASEAN-SEAMEO will be held on August 26, 2021.

Undersecretary for Planning, Human Resource, and Organizational Development Jesus Mateo, Undersecretary for Field Operations Revsee Escobedo, Undersecretary for Curriculum and Instruction Diosdado San Antonio, Assistant Secretary for Curriculum and Instruction Alma Ruby Torio, and other DepEd personnel also attended the ceremony. (DepEd)