Plan Philippines Annual Progress Report 2010

A YEAR IN

PHILIPPINES

SUMMARY REPORT

2010

A farmer retrieves copra (dried coconut kernel) after a flood

3

OUR PRIORITIES

GOOD REASONS

in the Philippines

why Plan works in the Philippines

• More than a quarter of the rural population has no access to decent sanitation

• Offering families opportunities to increase their household financial security

• 60 per cent of births take place without skilled medical help

• Protecting the health of children and young people

• 12 per cent of children aged 5–14 are engaged in work

• Improving children’s education, from preschool level onwards • Protecting children who are at risk of abuse, exploitation and harm, and those who are particularly vulnerable, for example those with disabilities • Helping communities reduce their vulnerability to natural disasters

‘Aurora has always known that education would be her escape from poverty’ CHINA Children attend a playgroup supported by Plan in a BURMA community inaccessible by roads LAOS

Philippines Facts Capital: Manila Population: 97.9 million Languages: Filipino and

The south-west monsoon (from May to October) is known as the ‘Habagat’, and the dry winds of the north-east English areTHAILAND official. Over 150 monsoon (from November to local languages and dialects VIETNAM April) as the ‘Amihan’. are spoken Economy: The Phillipines is a Climate: The Philippines newly industrialised country CAMBODIA has a tropical climate and is with an economy anchored usually hot and humid. The in agriculture. There are average yearly temperature substantial contributions is around 26.5°C. There are from manufacturing, mining, three recognised seasons: remittances from overseas ‘Tag-init’ or ‘Tag-araw’ (the Filipinos, and service industries hot season or summer from such as tourism and business March to May), ‘Tag-ulan’ process outsourcing. The daily (the rainy season from June income for 45 per cent of to November), and ‘Taglamig’ the population is less than (the cold season from US$2 a day.

December to February).

MALAYSIA

Laoag

Dagupan Masbate (Central and South)

Manila

North Samar West Samar East Samar

Occidental Mindoro Iloilo

PHILIPPINES Country Office Program Units

Southern Leyte

Camotes Islands, Cebu Zamboanga

Davao General Santos

MALAYSIA

PALAU

Focus On:

building household economic security Plan works with poor families to improve their finances and food supply. We help farmers learn about organic food production and provide women with access to financial services to help them set up small businesses. We also support communities to restore mangroves, the breeding grounds for fish and other marine life. We create

vocational and technical training opportunities for young people and support the training of paralegals in villages, to help families resolve disagreements on land tenure and access to resources.

Groups of children and adults plant mangroves in a deforested coastal area in Camotes

A New Start for Aurora If your car breaks down one day in North Samar, eastern Philippines, don’t be surprised if the mechanic who fixes it is Aurora. She has just started a two-year course in car mechanics.

Female mechanics are rare in the Philippines.

For Aurora, though, it’s not the trade she’s learning that’s most remarkable – it’s her success in getting into the course in the first place. ‘Many were surprised at my interest in a work understood as men’s work,’ she says.

Education is crucial Aurora’s determination is a useful attribute in the villages where Plan works in North Samar.

Families in these rural communities are among the poorest in the Phillipines. Many struggle to grow enough food just to survive. There’s little money left to pay for medicines or healthcare when their children are ill, or to meet the costs of schooling. Added to this, they also contend with the threat of natural disasters like flooding.

Plan supports families here to give their children a more secure future. We help them to farm more productively, build their finances, feed their children nutritious food, protect their health and send them to school.

Aurora has always known that education would be her escape from poverty. That, and her resolve to work hard in honour of her mother, who died not long after they moved to North Samar from Manila.

‘It’s your mother’s wish that you continue with your studies,’ her father told her. ‘Let’s keep that in mind.’

But although Aurora took his advice to heart, consistently coming first in class, it seemed as if poverty would ruin her ambitions when her father could not afford to send her to college.

Skills training Fortunately, Plan’s vocational and technical training centres offer young people like Aurora an opportunity to continue their studies, learning skills to help them find paid work or even set up their own small businesses.

Plan has built a training centre in Tacloban, south-east of Manila. Working in partnership with local government and the Technical

Produced for Philippines by Plan International Australia.

Education and Skills Development Authority, we offer a range of vocational and skills courses, including information technology and welding.

All trainees come from the poorest families in the areas where Plan works and have been forced to drop out of school or abandon formal education.

Plan told families in Aurora’s village that 60 scholarships would be awarded to train in car mechanics at the centre in Tacloban. All the young people who were no longer in school were keen to apply. Although Aurora had never thought about becoming a mechanic, she decided that this would be the best way to secure her future and help her family.

Aurora had to fight hard for her place on the course. The rigorous application process included a written examination, an interview and other equally thorough tests. So, when she received the letter informing her that out of hundreds of hopefuls from Northern Samar she alone had been successful, she was delighted.

She joins 25 girls from across the Philippines who will graduate from the program with a qualification in auto mechanics. With it comes the prospect of employment, a decent wage and the chance for her children to enjoy a better education and quality of life.

This year Plan has given business and vocational skills training to more than 1000 people like Aurora.

The Bigger Picture Plan is working with children, families and communities to find sustainable solutions to the challenges in the Philippines. We have only given you a small insight into Plan’s work in the Philippines with this report but over the past year we also: • Improved the quality of education and care for children by building or repairing five childcare centres and equipping 39 new classrooms • Protected children’s health by building or upgrading 3251 toilets • Helped families to increase their incomes by training 4407 farmers in using better agricultural techniques • Rescued 289 trafficked children and ensured 260 were returned safely to their home countries Your support as a sponsor is crucial to achieving these results. With the resources provided by sponsors, Plan expertise and the collaboration of communities and local partners we are making a big difference to the lives of people in the Philippines.

Thank you for your involvement!

To learn more about Plan’s work in the Philippines visit plan.org.au/ourwork/asia/philippines

Some names have been changed for privacy and child protection reasons

‘All trainees come from the poorest families in the areas where Plan works and have been forced to drop out of school or abandon formal education.’

‘I thank the sponsors, donors and partners whose continuing support has enabled us to deliver our commitments to Filipino children all these years’ – Michael Diamond, Plan’s Country Director in the Phillipines