Pasay City again bags DepEd Literacy Award for successful literacy programs

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MANILA — The city government of Pasay has bagged the first place in the Department of Education’s search for best literacy program in the National Capital Region for the third time.

A previous winner in 2010 and 2012, Pasay once again bested the 16 other local government units (LGUs) of Metro Manila in the Regional Literacy Search for Outstanding Local Government Unit–Highly Urbanized Category and Literacy Program for 2014.

Navotas City ranked second to Pasay in the same category.

The stringent search is being conducted by the DepEd and the Literacy Coordinating Council every two years.

The DepEd Regional Literacy Award seeks to recognize LGUs nationwide that have developed and implemented policies, programs, and projects conducive to literacy development that have made a positive impact on the barangay level as well as on the quality of life of their people.

“I am very pleased that the high premium we place on education, incorporating learning components in all of the city’s programs, is being commended by the national government for the third time,” said Pasay City Mayor Antonino Calixto in a statement.

He said there is a concerted effort to ensure that all programs of the city contribute to literacy development because that’s a sure way to empower the people to enjoy better and more productive lives.

“Our programs started small but they now benefit thousands. We are not daunted by the scale of numbers. We educate one family at a time,” he said.

As No. 1 in the NCR, Pasay City is a strong contender for the National Literacy Awards which the Department of Education will give out later this year.

During the On-site Validation and Evaluation of Pasay City’s programs conducted early this month, Calixto showcased three of his homegrown programs.

Among these are education program aimed at meeting “Education for All” targets, the “Take Care I Care” Health Program which provides P25,000 hospital bill subsidy for indigent patients in three accredited hospitals in the city, and the Family-based Ecological Diversion and Recycling of Waste (FEDROW) system that was launched in 2012.

Several beneficiaries gave actual testimonials during the on-site validation wherein they elaborated on the learning they got through the health program.

These include basic family health care, sanitation and hygiene for their environment, as well as financial independence.

The FEDROW system is a set of home-based livelihood skills training that mobilizes households to address biodegrables at the home level.

The same program was also recognized by the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) as a “Best Practice” in Urban Greening that should be replicated by other urban cities nationwide.