Government think tank Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) recently issued a bleak scenario, saying that one in three Filipino children are stunted due to severe underinvestment and insufficient access to high quality childcare services In its study “Behind the Slow Start: An Assessment of Early Childhood Care and Development (ECCD) in the Philippines” authored by Valerie Gilbert T. Ulep, Lyle Daryll D. Casas, Aaron Carols G.
Manuel, John Paulo D. Mendoza, Joy Bagas, and Kim Leonard G. Dela Luna observed that inadequate and untimely access to high-quality early childcare and prenatal interventions were factors that pushed the alarming levels of stunting among Filipino children.
Furthermore, the study also found that the severe underinvestment for early childhood care and development, weak institutions, and fragmented governance also become stumbling blocks in the implementation of early childhood care development interventions. The study was published in support of the Second Congressional Commission on Education (EDCOM 2). “EDCOM 2 welcomes the findings of the study conducted by PIDS.
Our recommendations on the programmatic and legislative reforms to our education systems are based on empirical evidence from these kinds of studies,” said EDCOM 2 Executive Director Karol Mark Yee. The authors pointed out that participation in early education among Filipino children aged three to four years old is low, despite the implementation of legislations such as t.