Encouraging children to get one step closer to achieving their dreams is the goal for a humanitarian organization that recently launched its 2024 back-to-school campaign.
Dubbed #OneBagOneDream, World Vision Philippines aims to raise enough funds to provide learning kits worth P1000 to about 24,000 Filipino children.
“[This initiative] provides opportunities for people to escape poverty, so they can become better versions of themselves,” Jun N. Godornes, World Vision Philippines’ interim national director said in the July 16 media launch. “It provides opportunities for sustainable change.”
World Vision Philippines raised P2.5 million last year, according to Precious Hope T. Basco, its resource development director officer-in-charge.
The funds, Ms. Basco said, were used to distribute school supply kits for 24,000 children nationwide.
“We’re hoping to reach at least the same amount this year – or even more,” she said in the same event.
World Remit, a digital remittances brand, found in 2023 that Filipino families must set aside at least 51% of their monthly income to cover essential school items, including pencils and notebooks.
According to the report, the average number of children per household is between two to three, and the cost of sending each child back to school is P2,661.
This year, the Department of Trade and Industry’s (DTI) 2024 price guide for school supplies showed that nearly a quarter (24%) of the stock keeping units (SKUs) have increased prices this year.
“We increased to P1000 per school kit this year, up from P1000 for every two school kits last year, because school supplies cost more now,” Ms. Basco said.
The organization’s priority areas include Aklan, Leyte, Cebu, Misamis Occidental, and North Cotabato, she added.
“We stay until several kids graduate at least from K-12. That already elicits a significant change in the lives of Filipino families,” Mr. Godornes said.
About 18.6% (7,856,000) of children aged 5 to 24 years were not attending school, based on the Philippine Statistics Authority’s Annual Poverty Indicator Survey of 2023. Of those who were not attending school, 9.9% said the reason was the high cost of education or financial concerns. – Patricia B. Mirasol
