For a safe and quality education
In the first half of the year, the Benedict Menni Foundation sponsored a project at the Sisters Hospitallers’ Guardian Angel Learning Centre in the Philippines designed to ensure a quality education for students, some of whom live with a mental illness and/or disability.
Guardian Angel Learning Centre
The Josefa Hospitaller Foundation, an affiliate of the Sisters Hospitallers’ Congregation, manages the Guardian Angel Learning Centre, located in the city of Pasig (Philippines). The school, which is accredited by the Philippine government, offers quality education to children aged 4-12, with both regular education and special education courses.
– Regarding regular education courses, the centre enrols 18 pre-primary students (4-6 years old) and 90 primary school students (6-12 years old).
– For special education courses, the centre enrols 54 children (3-12 years old) with different pathologies: autism, functional diversity and/or Down’s Syndrome, among others.
The school’s goal is to help guarantee the right to education for children with special needs, who attend the centre to develop themselves to the fullest extent possible.
Focusing on special education, the school offers early intervention for toddlers with special needs through an inclusion programme (integrated into the regular school programme) that features occupational therapy sessions with the centre’s professionals and the child’s circle of support, which may include parents, teachers, therapists, centre personnel, and the entire educational community.
The centre has more than 22 professionals and 10 classrooms for normal school activities, two dedicated occupational therapy rooms, a cafeteria, a library, a laboratory, and a playground for the recreational activities that are so necessary in schools.
Nevertheless, in the last year, an important issue emerged regarding the children’s safety and the sustainability of the school, due to the condition of some of its facilities. Specifically, the existing water pipes—being very old—developed leaks, which resulted in excess water consumption (a scarce resource in the area), negatively impacting the school’s budget and hindering its main purpose: providing quality education.
Moreover, the school’s roof is rusty, deteriorating, and leaking a lot, so much so that during the rainy season, classes are interrupted because of leaking and flooding. Heavy rains and storms hit the Philippines with increasing frequency, making it necessary to have a strong infrastructure capable of withstanding adverse weather conditions, where we can provide uninterrupted quality education in a safe environment for children.
Project context
According to the United Nations, in 2020, the population of the Philippines was approximately 109,581,078 people, equal to 1.41% of the total global population. The Philippines ranks 13th on the list of the world’s most populous countries (and dependent territories).
The Philippines ranks 113th on the UNDP’s Human Development Index. Income distribution is uneven, with 20% of the population owning more than 50% of income. Over 20 million Filipinos live below the poverty line, and more than 70% of the population live in the country’s rural southwest region.
