COTABATO CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / November 27, 2009) – An unidentified gunman shot dead a Filipino worker of the United Nations Children’s Fund in a broad daylight attack the restive province of Maguindanao in the southern Philippines, police said Friday.
It said the attack killed Nestor Bulahan who was shot in the abdomen while on his way to meet a friend in Poblacion in the town of Parang. The killing, which occurred at around 10:30 a.m. came three days after 57 people, mostly election campaigners and journalists, were massacred by rival politicians in Maguindanao’s Ampatuan town.
The province belongs to the Muslim autonomous region.
“We are still investigating the attack. Initial reports said Nestor Bulahan was on his way to meet a friend when he was shot by a lone gunman, who fled after the shooting,” said Superintendent Sigfried Ramos, of the regional police force.
No individual or group claimed responsibility for the latest attack, the police officer said.
Little was known about Bulahan except that he was working with the United Nations Children’s Fund, one of the world's best-known organizations devoted to the health and welfare of children in 158 countries. (Mindanao Examiner)
Showing posts with label UNICEF. Show all posts
Showing posts with label UNICEF. Show all posts
Friday, November 27, 2009
UNICEF man shot dead in the southern Philippines
Monday, February 09, 2009
Sulu Province Scores High In Primary Education
SULU, Philippines - Sulu's indicator on primary education posted high in the implementation of the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) assisted Sixth Country Program for Children (CPC-6), the official Philippine News Agency said.
This is based on the resent findings of the latest Sub-Regional Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (SR-MICS) conducted late last year.
The SR-MICS, a joint project of the UNICEF and the National Statistics Office, was designed to provide baseline information for assessing the situation of children and women in the 24 provinces and cities covered in CPC-6.
Provincial Planning and Development Coordinator Bertrand A. Chio said during the SR-MICS Analysis Review Workshop held last November 4-6 at the Area Coordinating Center in Patikul town that the MICS results showed that Sulu scored high in primary education indicators. Of the 24 provinces and cities, Sulu, side by side with Pasay City, ranked number one in the indicator pointing to the percentage of children in Grade 1 who survive to Grade 6.
In the same survey, the province however scored alarmingly on indicators pointing to households consuming iodized salt, and on attending early childhood education for ages 3-5. The indicators ranked low for birth registration, exclusive breastfeeding of 0-3 months, birth delivered in health facilities, and for fully immunized babies by 12 months.
Chio said the MICS results reveal that the province is doing well in its advocacy and on its resolve to provide programs to uplift the lives of women and children.
On other indicators such as access to potable water, antenatal care, assistance at delivery, Vitamin A and iron supplementation, and knowledge on children's rights – all have acceptable ratings. In addition, programs to address the problem on early childhood education, and child labor in the province, indicators show that these need to be hastened.
In an official letter, UNICEF representative to the Philippines, Nicholas Alipui informed Governor Abdusakur M. Tan that the MICS report, although it is still a draft, is the most recent, reliable and up to date baseline information on the assessment of the situation of children and women in the 24 provinces and cities covered by CPC-6. Alipui said the MICS report will serve as the basis for developing future plans, programs, policies and advocacy materials for the realization of the rights of children in the provinces and cities covered by UNICEF.
Elated with the results of the survey, Governor Tan attributed the achievement to the continued cooperation, partnership and commitment of the partner agencies like the Integrated Provincial Health Office, the Department of Education, the Department of Interior & Local Governemnt, the Department of Social Welfare and Development.
He also cited the cooperation and advocacy of the Philippine National Police, the state-run dxSM-Radyo ng Bayan, the Department of Labor and Employment, the SDM Vicariate, Provincial Planning and Development Office, local officials and other stakeholders in pursuing programs that would further improve the lives of children and women.
Governor Tan, however, said that are still much to be done to sustain the program and address those indicators that were poorly rated.
This is based on the resent findings of the latest Sub-Regional Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (SR-MICS) conducted late last year.
The SR-MICS, a joint project of the UNICEF and the National Statistics Office, was designed to provide baseline information for assessing the situation of children and women in the 24 provinces and cities covered in CPC-6.
Provincial Planning and Development Coordinator Bertrand A. Chio said during the SR-MICS Analysis Review Workshop held last November 4-6 at the Area Coordinating Center in Patikul town that the MICS results showed that Sulu scored high in primary education indicators. Of the 24 provinces and cities, Sulu, side by side with Pasay City, ranked number one in the indicator pointing to the percentage of children in Grade 1 who survive to Grade 6.
In the same survey, the province however scored alarmingly on indicators pointing to households consuming iodized salt, and on attending early childhood education for ages 3-5. The indicators ranked low for birth registration, exclusive breastfeeding of 0-3 months, birth delivered in health facilities, and for fully immunized babies by 12 months.
Chio said the MICS results reveal that the province is doing well in its advocacy and on its resolve to provide programs to uplift the lives of women and children.
On other indicators such as access to potable water, antenatal care, assistance at delivery, Vitamin A and iron supplementation, and knowledge on children's rights – all have acceptable ratings. In addition, programs to address the problem on early childhood education, and child labor in the province, indicators show that these need to be hastened.
In an official letter, UNICEF representative to the Philippines, Nicholas Alipui informed Governor Abdusakur M. Tan that the MICS report, although it is still a draft, is the most recent, reliable and up to date baseline information on the assessment of the situation of children and women in the 24 provinces and cities covered by CPC-6. Alipui said the MICS report will serve as the basis for developing future plans, programs, policies and advocacy materials for the realization of the rights of children in the provinces and cities covered by UNICEF.
Elated with the results of the survey, Governor Tan attributed the achievement to the continued cooperation, partnership and commitment of the partner agencies like the Integrated Provincial Health Office, the Department of Education, the Department of Interior & Local Governemnt, the Department of Social Welfare and Development.
He also cited the cooperation and advocacy of the Philippine National Police, the state-run dxSM-Radyo ng Bayan, the Department of Labor and Employment, the SDM Vicariate, Provincial Planning and Development Office, local officials and other stakeholders in pursuing programs that would further improve the lives of children and women.
Governor Tan, however, said that are still much to be done to sustain the program and address those indicators that were poorly rated.
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Youths drawn into online sexual exploitation in the Philippines
CEBU, Philippines – In a poor shanty in the Central Philippines city of Cebu, a tiny internet café offers broadband connectivity with the outside world. In a place that lacks running water, the opportunities presented by the existence of the internet are boundless.
But along with these opportunities are the inherent risks posed by the net. A growing number of youths in the Philippines are being drawn into a dangerous world of sexual exploitation by foreigners they meet online.
A way to earn money
At the age of 15, Angel began connecting with foreign men in chat rooms.
“I had many friends chatting online,” he said. “They told me ‘Angel, it’s really nice to chat with the foreign guys because you can earn money.’”
For several hours every day, Angel is online with men from North America and Europe. “They tell me that, ‘I will send you money if you show me your body, your naked body,’ and yes I will show it, and they will send me money.”
The world he and his friends inhabit is the seedy collection of internet cafes, some of them with private cubicles, where teenagers can ‘perform’ on web-cams for foreign customers. Close by the new internet cafes that have been springing up in local cities, are the offices of remittance companies, where the teenagers can be paid instantly by their overseas clients.
A childhood lost
“I support my mother together with my sister and her kids, and my grandmother,” said Angel’s friend, Katrina, who has found himself the family’s bread winner at age 17. Like his friends, he earns up to 200 dollars per month.
These children may suffer from long-term psychological harm, in addition to missing the chance for an education. In order to surf online when European and American men are online, they need to be in the internet cafes while other children of school age are asleep.
At the Florencio Urot National High School in Cebu, teacher Loreto Roca, has seen a number of his pupils drop out of class. “They lose interest in their studies,” he said. “They can’t focus anymore. Eventually, they drop out of school.”
Socially responsible cafes
Recognising the harm being inflicted on so many teenagers, UNICEF is supporting initiatives around the Philippines to deal with the problem. A number of internet cafés have agreed to remove their private booths after one of these initiatives put pressure on them to do so.
UNICEF is also promoting a charter which lays down a code of conduct for internet cafes to follow to make them safer for children.
Mickey Tiangco runs one such internet café on the outskirts of Manila.
“Children have to be careful in meeting with strangers they meet in chat rooms,” he warned. “And for us, the shops, we have to be socially responsible.”
In his café, no children are allowed in at night, and signs are everywhere warning about the dangers for unsuspecting youngsters.
Back in Cebu, and hundreds of other cities like it, teenagers who make a living by chatting and performing on-line for foreign men know all about those risks. “Sometimes they come to the Philippines but I am afraid to meet up with them,” said Freda, age 16. “Because usually all they want to do is have sex.” (Rob McBride)
But along with these opportunities are the inherent risks posed by the net. A growing number of youths in the Philippines are being drawn into a dangerous world of sexual exploitation by foreigners they meet online.
A way to earn money
At the age of 15, Angel began connecting with foreign men in chat rooms.
“I had many friends chatting online,” he said. “They told me ‘Angel, it’s really nice to chat with the foreign guys because you can earn money.’”
For several hours every day, Angel is online with men from North America and Europe. “They tell me that, ‘I will send you money if you show me your body, your naked body,’ and yes I will show it, and they will send me money.”
The world he and his friends inhabit is the seedy collection of internet cafes, some of them with private cubicles, where teenagers can ‘perform’ on web-cams for foreign customers. Close by the new internet cafes that have been springing up in local cities, are the offices of remittance companies, where the teenagers can be paid instantly by their overseas clients.
A childhood lost
“I support my mother together with my sister and her kids, and my grandmother,” said Angel’s friend, Katrina, who has found himself the family’s bread winner at age 17. Like his friends, he earns up to 200 dollars per month.
These children may suffer from long-term psychological harm, in addition to missing the chance for an education. In order to surf online when European and American men are online, they need to be in the internet cafes while other children of school age are asleep.
At the Florencio Urot National High School in Cebu, teacher Loreto Roca, has seen a number of his pupils drop out of class. “They lose interest in their studies,” he said. “They can’t focus anymore. Eventually, they drop out of school.”
Socially responsible cafes
Recognising the harm being inflicted on so many teenagers, UNICEF is supporting initiatives around the Philippines to deal with the problem. A number of internet cafés have agreed to remove their private booths after one of these initiatives put pressure on them to do so.
UNICEF is also promoting a charter which lays down a code of conduct for internet cafes to follow to make them safer for children.
Mickey Tiangco runs one such internet café on the outskirts of Manila.
“Children have to be careful in meeting with strangers they meet in chat rooms,” he warned. “And for us, the shops, we have to be socially responsible.”
In his café, no children are allowed in at night, and signs are everywhere warning about the dangers for unsuspecting youngsters.
Back in Cebu, and hundreds of other cities like it, teenagers who make a living by chatting and performing on-line for foreign men know all about those risks. “Sometimes they come to the Philippines but I am afraid to meet up with them,” said Freda, age 16. “Because usually all they want to do is have sex.” (Rob McBride)
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
UNICEF Promotes Breastfeeding In Southern Leyte
MAASIN CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / June 11, 20080 – The United Nations International Children’s Fund (UNICEF) Deputy Representative Collin Davies has recently visited this central Philippine city to promote good health and breastfeeding among local mothers.
Speaking at a press conference, Davies aggressively promoted breastfeeding and said the practice will make babies healthier. “The reason why your baby is here is because of you and by giving your baby what is best for him or her is your obligation as a parent,” he said, referring to mothers and fathers.
Davies said scientific studies on breastfeeding show that it is the only way to provide babies with the necessary nutrients that they need without shifting to formulated milk products.
He said each individual can help promote breastfeeding by encouraging other people they meet everyday about the importance of it to babies. He also praised Governor Damian Mercado who always start and end his speeches in all occasions about the importance for mothers to breastfeed their babies.
Davies implied the persuasive promotion and favorable endorsement to breastfeed babies is anchored on scientific studies that bottle-fed infants have a higher mortality rate compared to naturally breastfeed babies.
“The obvious simple information is that mother’s milk has all the necessary nutrients needed to provide babies with strong resistance against childhood diseases. Additionally, health practitioners have advised mothers to breastfeed their babies for a period of at least two years,” he said.
Davies, who was accompanied by Filipino UNICEF officers Willy Claudio, Winston Henomino, Baby Estilles and Dennis Salvacion also led officials to the handover of the agency-assisted school project in Bontoc. (Quirico M. Gorpido, Jr.)
Wednesday, November 15, 2006
Zamboanga Sur Gets UNICEF Grants
ZAMBOANGA DEL SUR (Alma Tingcang / 15 Nov) - For 2006, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) entrusted to the provincial government of Zamboanga del Sur the amount of P14.1 million to address vital issues affecting children which is implemented through the following program components: Health and Nutrition, Early Childhood Care and Development, Education, Local Policy and Institutional Development, Communication, Children in Need of Special Protection and HIV/AIDS.
Zamboanga del Sur Gov. Aurora Cerilles, chairperson of the Provincial Council for the Welfare of Children and Women, said the province is fortunate because the program ushered greater headway in upholding the interest of children who are being placed at the heart of the government’s development agenda.
Program implementation of the 6th Country Program for Children (CPC 6) under the auspices of UNICEF runs from 2005-2009 and promotes the Child Friendly Movement in Zamboanga del Sur.
It is geared towards putting the best interest of the child at the core, all efforts and resources of the community mobilized to defend and care for children - the youngest and most vulnerable members of our society.
Cerilles said: “Through the program, we have properly mashaled our efforts and interventions for the reduction of disparities for the major health, nutrition, education and protection indicators in focus areas.”
“Under the framework of the Child Friendly Movement, we have effectively sustained the survival, development, protection and participation rights of children that count vital in establishing child-friendly communities,” Cerilles added.
In her State of the Children Report, the governor proudly said that Infant Mortality Rate as well as Maternal Mortality Rate has greatly decreased. Other indicators prove that the program is gaining headway in terms of implementation.
Dr Marisa Ricardo, UNICEF Focal Officer for Zamboanga del Sur, said the PIR is conducted to evaluate the performance of program beneficiaries and assess its impact in relation to the achievement of program goals and objectives.
“Aside from United States and Australia, there are many countries who signified their intention to help – Saudi Arabia for instance, want to help Mindanao and we have to maximize our efforts to utilize these funds for the benefit of the youngest members of society - our children. We owe it to our donor-countries to deliver what is expected of us, and update them not only how the funds were spent but also how it has improved the situation of children to the grass root level,” Ricardo explained.
The province has shown a remarkable performance, having been a program recipient from CPC 3 to CPC 6 which ends by year 2009. Program implementers have taken the challenge to finish the tasks entrusted to them. So much have to be done but the job is easier when everybody works for one common goal: putting the best interest of the child at the topmost agenda.
Zamboanga del Sur Gov. Aurora Cerilles, chairperson of the Provincial Council for the Welfare of Children and Women, said the province is fortunate because the program ushered greater headway in upholding the interest of children who are being placed at the heart of the government’s development agenda.
Program implementation of the 6th Country Program for Children (CPC 6) under the auspices of UNICEF runs from 2005-2009 and promotes the Child Friendly Movement in Zamboanga del Sur.
It is geared towards putting the best interest of the child at the core, all efforts and resources of the community mobilized to defend and care for children - the youngest and most vulnerable members of our society.
Cerilles said: “Through the program, we have properly mashaled our efforts and interventions for the reduction of disparities for the major health, nutrition, education and protection indicators in focus areas.”
“Under the framework of the Child Friendly Movement, we have effectively sustained the survival, development, protection and participation rights of children that count vital in establishing child-friendly communities,” Cerilles added.
In her State of the Children Report, the governor proudly said that Infant Mortality Rate as well as Maternal Mortality Rate has greatly decreased. Other indicators prove that the program is gaining headway in terms of implementation.
Dr Marisa Ricardo, UNICEF Focal Officer for Zamboanga del Sur, said the PIR is conducted to evaluate the performance of program beneficiaries and assess its impact in relation to the achievement of program goals and objectives.
“Aside from United States and Australia, there are many countries who signified their intention to help – Saudi Arabia for instance, want to help Mindanao and we have to maximize our efforts to utilize these funds for the benefit of the youngest members of society - our children. We owe it to our donor-countries to deliver what is expected of us, and update them not only how the funds were spent but also how it has improved the situation of children to the grass root level,” Ricardo explained.
The province has shown a remarkable performance, having been a program recipient from CPC 3 to CPC 6 which ends by year 2009. Program implementers have taken the challenge to finish the tasks entrusted to them. So much have to be done but the job is easier when everybody works for one common goal: putting the best interest of the child at the topmost agenda.
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