“Nagagalak po ang aking puso, at dito po sa Syudad San Fernando ginanap ang assembly na ito, kung saan maaari ko pong ibahagi sa inyo ang mga best practices ng aming Early Childhood Care and Development (ECCD) na amin pang mas pinalalakas at pinatatag. Pero isa lamang ang aming pinaniniwalaan na ang “ECCD is the answer key to social development”.
This was Mayor Edwin ‘EdSa’ Santiago’s statement during the 2018 Community-Based Early Years Fair on September 27, 2018 at the Mini-Convention Center, Heroes Hall.
With a theme “Inter-Sectoral Dialogue on Shared Vision and Action for Quality ECCD”, Local Government Units (LGUs) from North and Central Luzon flocked in the city to share their best practices and initiatives in delivering quality of education to children.
In an interview, ECCD Council Vice Chairperson and Executive Director Dr. Teresita G. Inciong lauded the efforts and initiatives of the local government towards “excellent and sustainable early childhood education”.
“Gusto ko lang pasalamatan si Mayor EdSa, kasi hanga ako sa kanya dahil ang dami niyang kaalaman at malaki ang pagmamahal niya about childhood education. Kaya natitiyak ko with his leadership, ang mga batang 0-4 years old ay mabibigyan ng tamang pag-aruga at magandang edukasyon,” she said.
Inciong furthered that parents should also do their part in “shaping and molding the capabilities of their children”.
“The government is doing its best upang masiguro yung development ng mga bata, but of course, parents should also do their part sa tamang pagpapalaki sa kanilang mga anak, hindi lang ang lokal na pamahalaan,” she added.
In his speech, Mayor Edwin ‘EdSa’ Santiago shared the best practices of the city in achieving universal and quality ECCD.
“Malaki at malalim ang aking interpretasyon kapag childhood education na ang pinag-uusapan, lagi kong sinasabi na “it takes a village to raise a child”, kailangan na magkaroon ng malasakit ang bawat isa dito sa ating komunidad na magtataguyod sa kapakanan ng mga bata. Kapag edukasyon ang prinayoridad, tiyak na maghahatid ito ng “sustainable development” sa pamayanan. Kaya kami dito sa Syudad San Fernando, ay hindi kami titigil sa pagpapalakas at pagtataguyod ng tama at dekalidad na edukasyon sa bawat batang Fernandino,” he ended.
Meanwhile, Local Chief Executives from the City of Sorsogon, Santiago, and Mankayan Benguet shared their ECCD journey and their innovative strategies.