As the new school year starts on Monday, 16 June, UNICEF Philippines is pushing for a climate-resilient start to in-person classes.

According to the United Nations agency, this will be possible by making the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC) child-sensitive.

The NDC is a climate action plan required by signatories to the Paris Agreement, which the government plans to submit ahead of the COP30 UN Climate Change Conference in Belém, Brazil.

Children in the Philippines – who make up a third of the country’s population – are at high risk from the impacts of climate and environmental shocks.

According to the World Risk Index, the Philippines registered the highest disaster risk index for three consecutive years.

Further, a UNICEF report also ranks the Philippines second highest in the East Asia and the Pacific region in terms of climate risk from a child’s perspective.

Meanwhile, preliminary findings from the Second Congressional Commission on Education (EDCOM II) and the Philippine Institute for Development Studies indicate that 53 teaching days were lost due to climate-related disruptions.

This translates to a substantial amount of lost learning time, with studies showing a decline in student achievement in Math and Science by up to 12 to 14 percent of a standard deviation for Grade 4 students, which is equivalent to half a year of learning.

Schools are often converted into evacuation centers when disasters happen, despite the provisions of the Children’s Emergency Relief and Protection Act (Republic Act No. 10821) stating that they should only be considered as a last resort.

Limited access to transportation and damage to infrastructure and learning materials further impede children’s learning. Aside from missed school days, the same report cited the Department of Education (DepEd)'s annual losses of P17.98 billion due to high hazard exposure.

“The climate crisis is not just changing the planet, it is changing children. The health and development of children’s brains, lungs, immune systems, and other critical functions are affected by their environment," Behzad Noubary, UNICEF Philippines Representative Ad Interim, said.

"Climate-related class disruptions deprive them of opportunities to develop the necessary foundational and socioemotional skills to thrive in the future," Noubary pointed out.

For children to achieve their full rights to education, he stressed, the NDCs need to commit to adaptation measures to promote "safe, equitable, and continuous access to quality education for all."

"Later is too late. We need to transform climate goals into reality for children now,” he pressed.

According to UNICEF, education systems can be climate-resilient and can play a critical role in equipping the school community with the knowledge, skills, and values needed for the green transition.

UNICEF called on the Philippine government to make the necessary investments in infrastructure, curricula, learning materials, teacher training, and alternative delivery modes to support flexible learning strategies when classes are disrupted.

About 27 million Filipino students returned to school on Monday, according to the Department of Education.