Special envoy to UNICEF champions welfare of children

MANILA, Philippines — At the second regular session of the UNICEF Executive Board held on Sept. 12-14 at the UN headquarters in New York, UNICEF executive director Henrietta Fore, UNICEF executive board president Tore Hattrem and UNICEF regional director for East Asia and Pacific Karin Hulshof expressed their gratitude to the Philippine government for its continued support for the work of UNICEF in the country.

They welcomed the appointment of Monica Prieto-Teodoro as the President’s special envoy to UNICEF as a reflection of the importance given by the Philippine government to children’s rights and child welfare.

In delivering the national statement during the adoption of the UNICEF country program document for the Philippines for 2019-2023, Teodoro reaffirmed the Philippine government’s commitment to protect the rights and promote the welfare of children.

She stated that “more than half of the 110 million Filipinos are under 25 years old. Child-focused interventions and policies are thus crucial. Children and the youth will be both drivers and beneficiaries of the country’s growth.”

The special envoy thanked UNICEF for their constructive engagement with the Philippine government and recognized UNICEF’s strategic intervention in support of government priorities, including addressing online violence against children and the situation of children in disasters and that of children in Mindanao. 

She highlighted the military’s role in protecting the welfare of the children in armed conflict.

Teodoro also shared her advocacies and concrete initiatives to ensure that no child is left behind.

These include the establishment of the Committee for the Welfare of Children in Congress, the Golden Rooster Foundation and Amor Village in Region 3. She stated that, as special envoy of the President, it is her priority to strengthen measures to ensure the physical and mental well-being of Filipino children and to protect them against child pornography and child-trafficking.

Further, to ensure that no child is left behind in the county’s path to sustainable development, she vowed to continue her work in protecting children with disabilities and children in conflict.

On the sidelines of the UNICEF executive board meeting, Teodoro engaged and had meetings with Fore, Hulshof, Hattrem, UNICEF director for private fundraising and partnership Gary Stahl and UNICEF-Canada president David Morley. She also met with the Philippine Permanent Representative to the UN Teodoro Locsin Jr. 

The discussions noted that this year commemorates 70 years of development partnership between UNICEF and the Philippines.

The partnership has, through the years, facilitated the successful implementation of programs covering education, health and nutrition, disaster risk reduction and emergencies, HIV and AIDS prevention, child protection and rescue, communication, local policy and institutional development.

The executive board adopted the 8th UNICEF Country Program for the Philippines for 2019-2023. The document is fully aligned with the Philippine Development Plan 2017-2022 and Ambisyon Natin 2040.