The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), as the lead of the Philippine delegation inthe first Global Ministerial Conference (GMC) on Ending Violence Against Children (VAC), pledged to adopt a whole-of-nation approach to put and end to VAC.

“The Philippines is committed to put in place a more robust child protection systems strategy in its legal and policy frameworks, with specific attention to government coordination structures,” DSWD Asst. Secretary for International Affairs, Attached and Supervised Agencies (IAASA) Atty. Elaine Fallarcuna said during her speech at the global conference held in Bogota, Colombia on November 8.

On the pledge topic regarding response and support services for children, the Philippine government committed to institutionalize multidisciplinary teams in all cities, municipalities, and public hospitals across the country by 2030.

“Each multidisciplinary team shall be composed of doctors, police officers, workers, lawyers, and other professionals and service-providers, who shall respond and manage all cases of violence against children in a trauma-informed approach,” Asst. Secretary Fallarcuna said in her speech on behalf of the Philippine government.

In terms of foster care and adoption services, the Philippine government pledged to increase foster parents to at least 10 per partner child-placing agencies in municipalities, cities, and provinces.

By 2030, the Philippine government commits to promote adoption by processing petitions for domestic adoptions within nine months of filing, according to the DSWD official.

The Philippine government also committed to reinforce the rights of children to meaningful participation, especially child victim-survivors by mandating a substantial number of children to be included in the drafting, implementation, and evaluation of policies that concern them on the national and local levels.

For the pledge topic on human, financial, and infrastructure resources, Asst. Secretary Fallarcuna said: “The Philippines commits to ensure that at least 3 percent of the general fund is allocated for child-protection programs, particularly, in a line item to be monitored through different sectors and with annual budget increases from 2024 to 2030. This will ensure that resources for child-protection programs are properly identified, attributed, and not diverted.”

The Philippine government will also “develop a child protection systems strategy with a comprehensive and more robust mechanism, with particular focus in learning institutions, including the development of child protection specialists, in national legislation, executive issuances, and local legislation.

Recognizing the need to address financial stress on parents, Asst. Secretary Fallarcuna said the Philippine government will provide parent and caregiver support through economic- or income-strengthening programs, as well as evidence-based parenting sessions to educate parents or caregivers and encourage them to replace corporal punishment with non-violent discipline techniques.

The Philippine government will also contribute to making a safe digital environment for children through the development of a strategic plan that will combat Online Sexual Abuse and Exploitation of Children, and Child Sexual Abuse and Exploitation Materials (OSAEC-CSAEM). The plan will be implemented in 2025. (AKDL)