DepEd opens program for out-of-school youths

TAGBILARAN CITY, Philippines — Education Secretary Armin Luistro led the national launching of the Abot Alam Zero OSY (out-of-school youth) program held in this capital city of Bohol the other day.

Luistro arrived here Tuesday morning for the launching of the program, which is a convergence strategy created by the Department of Education to bring education closer to those who have not finished their respective studies, particularly in the secondary education.

The DepEd’s Abot Alam Zero OSY has been aimed at attracting an estimated four million OSYs in the entire country but more than a million of them are targeted for the program this year, Luistro told local reporters. He said the national government targets to achieve zero OSY by 2016, at least based on the 1.3-million mapped.

Australia’s Ambassador to the Philippines Bill Twedell and National Youth Commissioner Jose Sixto Dantes III, (actor Dingdong Dantes), graced the launching ceremony that was also attended by Governor Edgar Chatto, provincial officials and mayors.

Elmer Argaño, executive assistant of Dantes, told The Freeman that 33 provinces have already launched the Abot Alam program in their respective areas, but the national launch had to be in Bohol as a premium for the province being one of the firsts to respond to undertake the program as called for by Luistro.

The DepEd records showed there are now 1,258,646 OSYs who are already in the Abot Alam program. Of this number, 589,748 OSYs are already identified in education with 79,479 enrolled; 377,832 in employment with 9,206 already employed; and 398,135 in entrepreneurship with 9,164 already in the undertaking.

In the case of Bohol, the Provincial Schools Division had already mapped 25,001 OSYs, the most of whom were in Mabini town with 2,125; followed by Tubigon with 1,472; Talibon with 1,144; and Sagbayan with 1,118. The lowest number was in San Miguel with 105.

PSD Superintendent Wilfreda Bongalos said that of the total OSYs mapped in Bohol, 9,839 of them want to go back to school, while around 2,000 were interested to work and 12,651 want to undergo skills training for work.

For OSYs who are interested to avail themselves of the program, Bongalos said they will have to approach the purok leaders, as established by the provincial government, and get enlisted by the barangay chairpersons who will then forward the names to the mobile teachers for education.

Provincial Administrator Alfonso Damalerio II said the Abot Alam program provides the OSYs of Bohol, aged 15 through 30, the opportunity to improve their status, with opportunities to go back to school, to be trained with new skills via TESDA or be assisted in getting employment.

Ambassador Twedell, for his part, handed over Books for Asia packages to Luistro and Education Undersecretary Mario Deriquito, who in turn passed these to Chatto, Bongalos and Tagbilaran City Schools Division Superintendent Evangel Luminarias. —Angeline Valencia and Ric V. Obedencio (FREEMAN)