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The Philippines
• children who are affected by domestic
violence in project areas
• children affected by armed conflict in
specific areas
• a relatively high number of children in
communities having experienced rape
• young women and men from the provinces
seeking work as domestic staff in urban
areas and being tricked into situations of
abuse or exploitation, and
• weak government policy and practice on
issues such as substance abuse and
combating child labour.
Children have also provided significant
further input as to the concerns they believed
should be given priority (see under Impact
of the project section).
An integrated approach
World Vision aims for lasting change in the
lives of children, their families and
communities. We want to influence
policymakers and those in power to have
specific programs/budget for children, and
strengthen local/national measures to ensure
that children are protected and represented.
Partners in this process
Engaging local government at a “meso” level
on child protection is one area where some
provinces of the Philippines are breaking new
ground. A significant initiative in Bohol is a
provincial children’s code, which sets and
monitors standards of a social safety net for
children. The formation of the Bohol
Children’s Code has been a local initiative
linked to a national Expanding Children’s
Participation in Social Reform (ECPSR)
program. ECPSR’s long-term goal is enhanced
children’s participation in local governance,
and it has national-level government
involvement as well as NGO implementation.
NGO partners in the national program
include PLAN International; World Vision
Development Foundation; Education,
Research and Development Assistance
Foundation; and Christian Children’s Fund.
The Bohol Children’s Code is one example
where an operational framework for child
participation links with public awareness,
advocacy and coalition-building. The result is
policy and programs that support children,
families and build community, all in areas
prioritised in the CAN study. 2 One difference
in the Philippines compared to some other
countries of the present study is that
decentralising some government functions
gives district authorities opportunity to
collect tax and respond to local priorities. In
this case, a budget for children’s activities has
been established and lobbying has resulted in
a child protection focus with great potential. 3
UNICEF supported the provincial authority,
working with a steering group, to run
consultative seminars. This example is a key
step in localising international protection
provisions expressed in the Convention on the
Rights of the Child (CRC). World Vision has
opportunity to monitor the implementation
of the code and learn from the process. It
may be possible for NGOs such as World
Vision to engage local governments in moving
to have similar legislation in regions where
governance is at such a point that
development of local legislation is possible.
Children as partners at community level
Community organisations and supported
children’s groups (called Children’s
Associations) are effective avenues to lobby
for the full implementation of the existing
children’s agenda, and to monitor application
of national commitments locally.
Children’s Associations aim to build the
self-esteem of children and are a principal
vehicle for engaging the community on child
protection. A significant support to the
recognition of child participation is in the
form of National Government approval:
Executive Order 421, 4 issued in June 1997,
establishes the legal identity of Children’s
Associations and encourages their support
from local authorities. At the time of the
study, there were 29 associations, with a
membership of 1,165 children.
2
3
Dorning, K, Crying Out: Children and communities speak on abuse and neglect, World Vision International, 2002 (http://www.wvi.org/imagine/can.htm)
Implementation Handbook for the Convention on the Rights of the Child, UNICEF, 1998
4 Executive Order No. 421 (“Further amending Executive Order no. 203 dated 27 September 1994, as amended by Executive Order no. 356, dated 12 July
1996”) can be viewed on-line at: http://www.childprotection.org.ph/databases/docs/eo421.doc
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