UNICEF welcomes appointment of Angara as Education chief

The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) on Monday welcomed the appointment of Sonny Angara as the secretary of the Department of Education (DepEd).

In a statement, UNICEF aired concern as more students continue to be at risk of missing in-person classes as more typhoons are expected to hit the country in the coming months.

Citing DepEd data, UNICEF noted that Super Typhoon Carina and southwest monsoon or habagat affected over 19,500 schools nationwide.

Over 1,000 public schools, meanwhile, have postponed their opening of classes for the school year 2024-2025 which was set on 29 July.

With that, the UN children's body called on Angara to "make sure that no child is left behind."

"Take care of the well-being and socio-emotional needs of learners, and to help our teachers," UNICEF Philippines country representative Edgar Donoso Paz said.

"We are ready to support collaborative work across sectors to address prerequisites to learning, such as the triple burden of malnutrition, violence against children, and the effects of climate change,” Paz added.

Paz said that the UNICEF is hopeful "for a renewed focus on learning recovery and inclusive education."