A once-in-a-lifetime opportunity was recently concluded as Children of Asia Philippines (COA-PH), through Project YUNIT, conducted its mission to promote the organization at the National Forum on Media and Information Literacy (NFMIL) 2024, held at the Communication Foundation for Asia (CFA) in Sta. Mesa, Manila last February 9-10, 2024.
The National Forum on Media and Information Literacy is an annual event organized by the Philippine Association for Media and Information Literacy (PAMIL), Inc., a professional organization promoting Media and Information Literacy (MIL) as a lifelong learning skill. The said event is the flagship project of PAMIL which allows Media and Information Literacy professionals and advocates from different parts of the Philippines to gather, discuss, and learn topics and issues relevant to MIL. This year’s edition focused on the theme, “Media and Information Literacy (MIL) for Everyone: Expanding Across Varied Contexts”, and had speakers from different universities, media organizations, and government agencies.
One of Children of Asia’s dedicated staff, IT Admin and Trainer Mr. Kenneth Bernejay Porio, or Sir Ken as he is called, himself an IT educator by profession, has been with PAMIL since 2019, and through his connection to the PAMIL organization, Children of Asia, through the Project YUNIT initiative, allowed Sir Ken to travel to Manila to attend the NFMIL 2024 in-person as part of the organizing team, and promote Children of Asia’s programs through a sponsor booth, and allowed to send five (5) teachers from the nine (9) partner schools of the organization to attend the event virtually through Zoom. In return, PAMIL included Children of Asia as one of its event sponsors and allowed marketing materials to be displayed during the event.
Five MIL teachers from COA-PH’s partner schools attended the NFMIL virtually. The teachers came from the following schools, namely: Almacen-Torevillas National High School in Medellín, Daanbantayan National High School in Daanbantayan, Inghoy National High School and Madridejos National High School both in Alegría, and Mabolo National High School in Cebu City. They have actively participated in the event and received needed attention during the Question and Answer portions of the Plenary Sessions.
During the two-day event, a sponsor booth was set up at the event venue at the Lagerway Hall of CFA to promote Children of Asia and its programs. Brochures of Children of Asia, DICE, Keep Me Safe!, and Child Rights Principles were displayed in the booth and were included in the in-person participants’ kits. Promotional videos of Children of Asia were played out in the booth and on the main screens of the event venue during breaks. Children of Asia t-shirts were also handed out as giveaways to participants who engaged during the events’ plenary sessions and to those who inquired about Children of Asia’s programs.
The COA-PH booth proved to be successful as participants from different schools and universities, media companies, and non-profit organizations came over to inquire about Children of Asia, its programs, beneficiaries, and services. Many of them have expressed interest in donating to and do partnerships with the organization, as well as providing learning materials that may benefit COA-PH Champions, the children-beneficiaries of the organization.
Children of Asia Philippines – Project YUNIT is looking forward to future partnerships through this initiative and is adamant on engagements that promote skills that enhance teaching and learning of its partner schools.
