DIRECTOR’S Cut: (This portion features the thoughts of DepEd 11 Regional Director Susana Teresa B. Estigoy, Ceso IV, for all stakeholders and recipients of the efforts to improve the basic education.) May we all be inspired with the thought that we are in a kind of work that provides us with opportunities to shape the minds and characters of leaders and community members of the future. This alone is already one big reason for us to be proud of our work, of our profession, and of our selves!!! "We have to continually examine what succeeds and fails, and why. We have to uphold and live true to our battle cry: 'Isulong ang Karunungan, Labanan ang Kahirapan!'"

What's your take on the Mindanao crisis? Discuss views with other readers

*****

The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) is a development plan that all countries and all leading development institutions worldwide have agreed to help the world’s poorest countries and lead them to progress. The general goal is to cut in half the number of people living in absolute poverty by 2015.

What are the MDGs?

1. Eradicate extreme poverty. Reduce by 50 percent the following (1) number of Filipinos living in extreme poverty between 1990 and 2015. (2) number of Filipinos who get lower than the minimum level of dietary energy consumption; and (3) number of underweight children under five years old.

2. Achieve universal primary education. All Filipino children should have elementary education by 2015.

3. Promote gender equality and empower women. All females and males should have equal opportunity in primary and secondary education, preferably by 2005, and in all levels of education no later than 2015.

4. Reduce child mortality. Reduce by two-thirds the number of children who die before the age of five.

5. Improve maternal health. Reduce by 75 percent the number of women who die giving birth and increase access to reproductive health services to 60 percent by 2015.

6. Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria, and other diseases. Stop the spread of HIV and AIDS, malaria and other major diseases by 2015.

7. Ensure environmental sustainability. Implement national strategies to reverse loss of environmental resources by 2015. Bring down the number of people with no access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation for those who cannot afford it by 2015. Achieve a significant improvement in the lives of at least 100 million slum dwellers by 2020.

8. Develop a global partnership for development. Improve the trading and financial system, deal comprehensively with the debt problems of developing countries, and provide access to affordable essential drugs.

Are we meeting the targets?

Halfway through 2015 -- the target year to achieve the Millennium Development Goals -- the Philippines has made considerable progress particularly in poverty reduction, nutrition, reducing child mortality, combating HIV/AIDS, malaria, and other diseases and access to safe drinking water and sanitary toilet facility. But the country needs to work harder on MDG 2 (Universal Primary Education) and MDG 5 (Maternal Mortality).

MDG 2: Universal Primary Education. Access to primary education worsened in School Year 2005-2006. It showed a decline in the net enrolment rate (the number of children enrolled in elementary education) from 96.8 percent in 2000 to 84.4 in SY 2005-2006.

The weak ability of the government to provide complete basic education services in more than 7,000 barangays in the country may be one of the reasons for the deterioration of the enrolment rate.

If this trend continues, it may set back our 2015 target of providing primary education for all Filipino children.

MDG 5: Maternal Mortality. Decline in number of maternal deaths per 100,000 live births has slowed down from 209 deaths in 1993 to 162 death in 2006.

Since then, it has not showed further improvements. In view of this, the goal of reducing it to 52 by 2015 is also unlikely to be met.

*****

You can access Deped Updates, latest issuances, and other relevant information through our website: http://www.region11.deped.gov.ph. For comments, suggestions and/or contributions, email me at renzthescribe@yahoo.com or visit http://renzmendoza.multiply.com for photos and other relevant information. For queries, complaints, and other concerns, call Deped Region 11 at (082) 227-9342 or fax to (082) 227-1102.

*****

Mr. Lorenzo E. Mendoza, M.A., is the Regional Supervisor in Filipino for Secondary and the Regional Information and Media Officer of Deped Region 11 and currently designated as Regional Library Hub Coordinator.

For more Philippine news, visit Sun.Star Pampanga.

For Bisaya stories from Davao. Click here.

(October 20, 2008 issue)
Write letter to the editor. Click here.