ADBSA AETA School

ADBSA Aeta School
Jesmag, Botolan, Zambales

Proposals for Nurturing initiatives by PBSP for ADBSA School, April 2012 Thursday 12 April NCIP3 officers were in Zambales with Kristine Jimeno-Rivadelo of PBSP(Philippine Business for Social Progress) to prepare a workplan for the implementation of approved projects for the 2-TOE²S, ADBSA and MAPE Aeta Schools. The project is entitled 'United Way Health and Hygiene Project for Aeta Children of Zambales'. The grant will be used to implement an 80-day supplemental feeding activity and to provide hygiene kits and slippers to at least 225 schoolchildren of the two TOE²S schools. Provision of inputs on vegetable gardening will also be implemented to supplement the feeding and hygiene assistance. The donor for the project is 'United Way of the Bay Area/Panama Fund' and funding was channeled through PBSP.

Visit to ADBSA Aeta School, Zambalez, November 2011 In November 2011 I joined a member of the NGO Philippine Business for Social Progress, staff from the National Commission for Indigenous Peoples, and a representative of the EVA Charity Foundation to see how the school was getting on. This was the first time an ADB spouse had visited our namesake school in many years. We found a vibrant school that had expanded and improved in the absence of sustained ADBSA support, but with help from various charities, NGOs, and government departments. The cluster of buildings is a beacon of hope in an otherwise bleak and impoverished area, where all clichés—dirt poor, eking out an existence, etc.—apply. The school is now a complex of buildings, it has four classrooms, a head's office, a covered basketball court, and toilets with plumbing supplied by a rainwater collection system. Inside, the classrooms are colorful, bright, and airy. The tables and chairs were donated by the European School in Manila. There is also a school garden and an outdoor kitchen. About 200 children attend the school. Students and teachers welcomed us with a program of singing, dancing and speeches on their covered basketball court built with donations from a mission church. Young students listen patiently to the remaining speeches. The teachers later told us that on any given day up to a third of the students are absent due to weak health or because they are needed to help on the land. This means all lessons have to be stand-alone. They quoted shocking statistics on the percentage of the students that are “wasted” and said a feeding program is badly needed to reduce undernourishment and malnourishment. Most of the girls and younger students were barefoot, and the school does not ask the students to wear uniforms as families do not have money to buy them. Young students listen patiently to the remaining speeches. The teachers later told us that on any given day up to a third of the students are absent due to weak health or because they are needed to help on the land. This means all lessons have to be stand-alone. They quoted shocking statistics on the percentage of the students that are “wasted” and said a feeding program is badly needed to reduce undernourishment and malnourishment. Most of the girls and younger students were barefoot, and the school does not ask the students to wear uniforms as families do not have money to buy them. After the speeches, the dances … Village elders demonstrate a traditional Aeta dance. Then the students have their turn. The ADBSA Aeta School teaches the children about their Aeta heritage so that they maintain their cultural identity. An important part of every EVAC school visit is the planting of native fruit trees donated by Jenny Wallum and grown in her small garden in Makati. This reinforces the link between the productivity of the land and the health of the community. We toured the school buildings and surrounding area. The children we met were lively and happy. The school seemed to be a fun refuge for them, and they had caring young teachers. Writing the check to help build an Aeta school is the easy part; creating a sustainable partnership is more difficult, requiring institutional memory and long-term commitment. The ADBSA’s donation toward the building of this school marked the start of a partnership, and hopefully not the end. The Aeta community and the EVA Charity Foundation hope that the ADBSA will resume its support, perhaps with annual visits to inspect the school, interact with the community, and distribute much-needed school supplies—one of the most beneficial forms of assistance for the Aeta children. The ADBSA-sponsored building is showing its age, with rusted holes in the roof and sagging wooden beams. Teachers are concerned that the roof may not be secure in a typhoon and would like to ask for help from the ADBSA to repair and strengthen it. Below are some more photos to give a flavor of our enjoyable visit. Thanks are due to Philippine Business for Social Progress for letting me piggyback their excursion. By Caroline Ahmad



The ADBSA AETA School was funded with the help of the Asian Development Bank Spouses Association and has been extended and developed by the community since it opened in January 2002. Since opening the community has shown great initiative in adding a third classroom, a stage, a dining hall and a Girl/Boy Scout corner. In 2006, we raised funds to help complete the classroom by concreting the floor. Most of these photos were taken by the children themsleves, during 2003, using disposable kodak cameras.