By Stacy Ong

MANILA – Save the Children Philippines on Sunday called for stronger support for education for children trapped in armed conflict and frequently displaced by natural calamities.

Save the Children is a global nongovernmental organization who works every day to give children a healthy start in life, the opportunity to learn and protection from harm. “When crisis strikes, and children are most vulnerable, we are always among the first to respond and the last to leave,” the group said.

Lawyer  Alberto Muyot, Save the Children Philippines Chief Executive Officer, raised the call in line with the celebration of International Day of Education on January 24 with the theme: “Learning for people, planet, prosperity, and peace.”

Every year, some 400,000 adolescents in the conflict affected areas in Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) do not attend school due to poverty, according to government figures.

These adolescents also face different forms of violence as well as recruitment by various armed groups.

At the same time, Save the Children is concerned about the situation of half a million learners affected by the continuing eruption of Taal Volcano.

These children have been displaced from their homes while their schools are either heavily damaged by ashfall or being used as evacuation centers.

“Save the Children Philippines places education at the forefront of its programs from development to emergency settings, particularly for children who suffer from intersectionality of vulnerabilities including learners with disabilities and indigenous people,” said Muyot.

In the last ten years, Save the Children has reached more than nine million children through its programs in health and nutrition, education and humanitarian response. (SA/IAmigo/Currentph.com)