Angara backs Samar youth drive for future-ready communities in PH

Insider Spotlight

• Education Secretary Sonny Angara urged Samar youth leaders to become ambassadors of peace and positivity in their schools and communities
• SIRAK Kabataan combines leadership development with programs covering education, health, employment and social support
• The initiative strengthens Samar’s pipeline of future-ready young leaders while addressing social challenges affecting students
  
  
  

Education Secretary Sonny Angara is backing Samar’s youth development push, highlighting the role young leaders can play in building peaceful communities and strengthening the country’s future workforce.

The Department of Education chief has expressed support for SIRAK (which means sunlight in Waray) Kabataan, Samar’s flagship youth development program, which brings together initiatives focused on leadership, education, health, employment and social development.

Why it matters

Programs that develop leadership and resilience among students can help communities build a stronger pipeline of young people prepared for higher education, employment and civic participation.

SIRAK Kabataan, launched in 2021, uses a systems approach and bridging leadership framework to address challenges confronting young people. Its programs include SIRAK Academy, YES Awards, One Values, Purple Desk, ProtecTeen, Tara, Basa and JobsNext, among others.

What he’s saying

“I think you're all leaders in your own right here in SIRAK, so please be ambassadors of peace, builders of strong, loving communities in your schools. Be ambassadors of positivity, because it seems that there are many broken families in our country,” Angara said in a press statement. 

His message puts students at the center of efforts to strengthen school communities, particularly as educators confront social and family issues that can affect learning, well-being and student engagement.

The bigger picture

Samar has positioned SIRAK Kabataan as a platform for developing young people into active participants in community development. The initiative seeks to build their skills while connecting them with interventions addressing adolescent health, mental wellness, learning and employability.

Samar Gov. Sharee Ann Tan has pushed for the province to become a youth-friendly community that develops proactive and future-ready changemakers. Angara earlier commended the provincial government’s initiatives and pledged support for its education and youth programs.

For schools and local governments, the approach underscores how investments in youth leadership can extend beyond classrooms by helping develop stronger communities and a more prepared future workforce. —Vanessa Hidalgo| Ed: Corrie S. Narisma