CHED-13 taps HEIs, partners for typhoon response The Commission on Higher Education (CHED)-Caraga is gearing towards a needs-based, demanddriven approach to assist typhoon-affected constituents in the higher education sector in the region. CHED-Caraga regional director Dr. George Colorado on Monday, February 14, in an interview with PIACaraga, said that they will be working closely with higher education institutes (HEIs) and CHED scholars in the region to solicit their inputs and come up with a comprehensive strategy to address the specific needs of typhoon-battered schools and students, especially those in the provinces of Surigao del Norte and Dinagat Islands. “I think that it would be better that [solutions]
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| February 19-25, 2022
Colorado
would come from them because it will strengthen their determination to implement them later on,” said Colorado. After the onslaught of the typhoon, Director Colorado and his personnel immediately visited affected areas, particularly in Siargao Islands and the Bucas Grande Islands in Surigao del Norte, to assess the schools. As of press time, CHED-Caraga has estimated a total of PhP344,555,704.07 in
damages sustained by HEIs across the region and PhP91,288,000 in the municipality of Socorro and the rest of Siargao Islands, and recorded an estimate of PhP383,274,063.03 in rehabilitation needs. As part of their initial interventions, scholars and grantees continue to receive funds from their respective programs to help support their needs during the disaster. The regional director has instructed HEIs to utilize the funds downloaded to them for mobilizing Caraga INFOCUS
