Philippines
Compassion started working in the Philippines in 1972. Today, there are over 95,000 children registered in our programs through 364 church partners.
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Snapshot of Philippines
30%
of children experience growth stunting as a result of malnutrition
13%
of people live below the poverty line
26%
of people lack access to proper sanitation
The Philippines has made strong progress in the past two decades, and more Filipinos have climbed out of poverty. Yet, more than 22 million Filipinos—slightly more than one in five—still struggle to meet their basic daily needs. More than 30 per cent of children live in poverty.
For these children and their families, challenges abound—including meeting their most basic needs. Many children don’t get enough nutritious food, to the extent that one in three has experienced stunting because of malnutrition. Others lack a safe place to grow and develop. More than 80 per cent of children have experienced some sort of violence, including physical, psychological, sexual or online abuse.
The online threat in particular is growing, with cheap internet access opening children up to different risks, including sexual and physical abuse that is livestreamed to an online audience. Some children are promised a respectable job but tricked into the cybersex business; others are threatened or coerced, often by neighbours, friends or even a family member. The Philippines has been identified as a global “hotspot” for online exploitation due to poverty, cheap technology, high rates of English and established money-wiring services.
More than 2.8 million children of school age lack access to education, with indigenous children and children living with disability disproportionately affected. Only 78 per cent of children complete their basic education.
These challenges are made even more difficult by regular destruction caused by tropical storms and typhoons which have become more frequent and more destructive over the past two decades. Usually the poorest households are the most vulnerable and the least able to rebuild and recover from the devastation. In 2013, Typhoon Haiyan, one of the most powerful tropical cyclones ever recorded, smashed the Philippines and other parts of southeast Asia, affecting 11 million Filipinos and killing more than 6300.
President Rodrigo Duterte came to power in 2016, promising to shake up the establishment and take a hard line against crime, particularly drug crime. In the intervening years, thousands of people have been killed in a state-ordered “war on drugs”—most of them people living in urban poverty, most of them by law-enforcement agencies or vigilantes acting with impunity. Several human rights organisations and international watchdogs have called for the President to be investigated for encouraging vigilantism and failing to prosecute law-enforcement agents accused of extrajudicial killings, but, so far, without result.
Letter from Compassion Philippines Director, Noel Pabiona
Dear Sponsor, I am Noel Pabiona, and I have been the Compassion Philippines Country Director for 13 years now. I am a proud father of two boys, Nathan and TJ. Just like me, both my sons love sports, having fun and ministering to little children and the poor. My boys constantly remind me to be a patient and responsible father, which in turn, reminds me of my heavenly Father’s love and amazing patience for me.
open_in_new Read full letter
Letter from Compassion Philippines Director, Noel Pabiona
Dear Sponsor,
I am Noel Pabiona, and I have been the Compassion Philippines Country Director for 13 years now. I am a proud father of two boys, Nathan and TJ. Just like me, both my sons love sports, having fun and ministering to little children and the poor. My boys constantly remind me to be a patient and responsible father, which in turn, reminds me of my heavenly Father’s love and amazing patience for me.
Compassion has worked in the Philippines for more than 45 years. Today, we have 349 projects reaching out to around 85,000 children across the islands.
Our country is made up of 7,100 islands and this can be a challenge in traveling. Yet, whenever I have time and reason, I visit our projects to meet as many children as I can. I have personally talked with many of the sponsored children and their families, and seen how sponsorship truly works. I have met several Compassion-sponsored teens who tell me that if not for their sponsorship, they would most probably be like many of the unsponsored teenagers in their community: unschooled, drug dependent or pregnant, without hope. Our teens study hard, contribute to society and are respectful to their parents.
Thanks to you, thousands of Filipino children now know God, live responsible lives and have hope for the future. I am living here in the Philippines—the nearest projects are just 10 minutes away by car—and there is truth when I say that your sponsorship works. I can see it personally.
Although public education is free, not all Filipino families send their children to school. A handful would rather have their children work so they could earn even a little for their families, even if it meant working in harmful conditions such as scavenging, quarrying and fishing. Some parents are also too lazy to play the role of mentors to their own children, and so do not encourage their children to study or do well in life.
My vision is to reach out to even more children. Eighty-one thousand seems to be a large number, but this is insignificant compared to our country’s total population of 102 million, where 12 million are still living in extreme poverty. In 2017, my focus is on giving every registered child the chance to be a disciple in the way of our Saviour. This, I believe, is what makes Compassion stand out. Not only do we give children hope, we also give them a chance to find eternal hope in Jesus; not only do we equip them for life, we also challenge them to give back and touch the lives of others.
Our church partners are doing a remarkable job in ministering to the children. Most of our partners serve the children beyond what is required in Compassion’s program. The need and vulnerability of the children compel them to do so. They reach out to the families and communities, and often initiate community development projects to support the local government. In most cases, our churches are more equipped, reliable and successful in their initiatives than the local government.
Finally, I would like to let you know that each letter you send to your sponsored child is not just a piece of paper. It is a reminder that the children are important, that they matter because they are loved. I have not met a child who didn’t value the letters from their sponsor. They all keep the letters in special boxes and most read them over and over.
As Compassion’s country director in the Philippines, I regard the sponsored children as my own and I know you do, too. So, with God’s grace, let us continue to work, pray and hope together for our children to be released from poverty and someday become responsible and fulfilled adults.
Thank you,
Noel Pabiona
Country Director Compassion Philippines
April’s Brand New Day
April Joy Aquino set out on a lifelong journey to serve the poor ever since her mother told her to be helpful. Despite losing their livelihood when a fire destroyed the public market in 1996, April’s mother (Nanay) did not stop telling her to give to people who were in worse living conditions.
open_in_new Read moreApril’s Brand New Day
April Joy Aquino set out on a lifelong journey to serve the poor ever since her mother told her to be helpful. Despite losing their livelihood when a fire destroyed the public market in 1996, April’s mother (Nanay) did not stop telling her to give to people who were in worse living conditions.
“[Nanay] is the perfect example—along with my sponsor—of someone who despite lacking many things in life is still ready to give to other people.”
When she was six years old, April was registered at PH-818, Dorea Child Development Centre, a ministry of Temple Baptist Church. She grew up a skinny and sickly little girl in the impoverished town of Kabankalan in Negros province. But with Compassion’s help and her mother’s encouragement, April finished high school and went on to college.
“Nanay explained that a social worker’s job is to create programs to help poor people in the community and … I didn’t think twice. I am inspired to help others because I know what it is to be poor, and I know how it is to be helped. It feels good knowing that there are people who care for you, and I want people to experience that from me.”
Today, April is the only licensed social worker at Brand New Day, a faith-based, non-governmental organisation that reaches out to street children, abused children and abused women.
“Growing up, being helped, knowing the Lord and now [working as] a social worker is like serving as an ambassador for the needy,” says April. “We may not have the same story but we have the same need and that is to know that we are loved, that we are gifted and that we have a Saviour ... This is what I’m trying to do every day, which is to be a reflection of God’s love to children.”
Words by Edwin Estioko and Richard Miller
Prayer requests for Philippines
- Pray for children and families in the northern areas of Davao province and Mindanao, especially farming families and those that rely on crops. Many regions have declared a ‘State of Calamity’ due to low rainfall and subsequent crop failures. This is already a poor region and people are vulnerable to food shortages.
- Pray for Careen, a young woman who recently graduated the program. Her eyesight has deteriorated because of type 1 diabetes; she has received medical treatment and even undergone laser eye-surgery but she can no longer see well enough to work. She asks for your prayers for complete healing.
- Pray for Chenly, a five-year-old girl who needs monthly blood transfusions to stay alive. The supply of blood is coming from another island and has to be delivered by boat and bus. Please pray for her health and a long-term solution to her illness. Pray for strength and courage for her family as they love and support her.
- Praise God for a successful surgery for Lawrence, an eight-year-old registered boy. He had open-heart surgery in May and is undergoing physical therapy to exercise his lungs. Pray for strength and for his continued recovery.
- Give thanks to God for a successful national pastors’ retreat, which saw more than 350 church leaders gather together. They say they are grateful for an encouraging time of learning, rest and friendship. Pray for strong relationships to benefit all local churches across the country.
- Please pray for safety and protection on church partners, children and families in the Canlaon Province. Government agencies and the military are on active operations against the New People’s Army (a separatist Communist militia) in the region and some of the fighting has occurred in urban areas, putting the children at extreme risk.
Stories from Compassion in Philippines
What do Sponsored Children Pray for You?
You pray for your sponsored child, but did you know they’re probably praying for you, too? Five children in the Philippines share how they ask God to bless, protect and strengthen their sponsors.
Compassion Sponsored Teen Named Top Student in the Philippines
After a year-long, nationwide search, the Philippines Government awarded a Compassion sponsored teenager the title of ‘Most Excellent Child in the Philippines’. Meet Jay Mark, the prize winner!
Trick-Shot Masters How Ridiculous' Journey to the Philippines
Think incredible trick shot videos have nothing to do with helping kids in poverty? Think again! Basketball trick shot masters and all round good guys How Ridiculous have been Compassion Ambassadors for years. Late last year, they traveled to the Philippines to shoot hoops with their sponsored children and witness the work of Compassion firsthand and film the experience.