A PROPOSED ordinance in Lapu-Lapu City seeks to strengthen early childhood care and development (ECCD) programs and improve access for children under five.
Councilor Annabeth Cuizon, chairperson of the Committee on Education, is pushing a measure that would institutionalize a City ECCD Coordinating Committee, establish a City ECCD Office, and allocate funding for the program.
The ordinance aims to complement Republic Act 12199, or the Early Childhood Care and Development System Act, signed on May 8, 2025. The law strengthens the national ECCD system and designates local government units as primary implementers of ECCD services.
Cuizon said effective ECCD implementation requires the involvement of parents, communities, barangays, and the City Government.
“Developing a strong foundation for our children requires a collective effort. All of us parents, communities, barangays and the city share that responsibility,” she said in Cebuano.
She added that the initiative is intended to build a stronger foundation for the city’s youngest residents.
Under the proposal, the City ECCD Coordinating Committee would act as a local convergence and recommendatory body, while the ECCD Office would manage program delivery and operations.
Citing City Social Welfare and Development Office data, the measure notes that Lapu-Lapu has 117 day care centers run by government and non-government groups, serving 5,772 children.
The ordinance estimates that the city has 10,000 to 12,000 children aged three to five, highlighting a gap in service coverage.
To address this, it proposes expanding ECCD services through center-based, home-based, and other alternative approaches, especially in underserved and hard-to-reach areas.
RA 12199 sets minimum standards for these modalities and allows strategies such as clustering child development centers and strengthening home-based services in areas with limited access or resources.
The law also tasks the ECCD Council with setting policies, standards, and guidelines for LGUs, which are responsible for delivering ECCD programs covering health, nutrition, early education, and social services for children under five.
Cuizon said Mayor Ma. Cynthia “Cindi” King-Chan, chair of the Local School Board, would be a key partner in advancing the city’s ECCD goals.
“We will expand ECCD by implementing Republic Act 12199 and enacting a local ordinance,” Cuizon said.
The proposal comes as national agencies work to operationalize RA 12199.
Its implementing rules and regulations were signed in August 2026 by the Department of Education, Department of the Interior and Local Government, and the ECCD Council, providing a framework for coordinated early childhood services. / DPC