Ormoc City far-flung schools welcome early Christmas in School-in-a-Bag from PLDT Group, Huawei

In partnership with PLDT-Smart Foundation (PSF) and Huawei Philippines, PLDT and Smart Communications, Inc. (Smart) continue to elevate inclusive education in Ormoc City through the donation of three School-in-a-Bag (SIAB) packages to the Department of Education (DepEd) Division of Ormoc City.

“PSF and Ormoc have long been partners in developing a smart citizenry through education. This partnership with Huawei for the PLDT and Smart School-in-a-Bag will further our shared goal of reaching last-mile schools to leave no learner behind,” said Esther Santos, PSF President.

Each SIAB includes a laptop, a Smart Bro LTE Pocket WiFi with load allocation, 10 tablets, a teacher’s guide, and digital learning resources for students. Each package also has digital educational materials such as contextualized Learning Activity Sheets (LAS) and 10 #LearnSmart apps that teach literacy and numeracy in the Mother Tongue.

“Christmas came early for DepEd Ormoc as we received these SIAB packages from the PLDT Group and Huawei. We hope these packages will help address the pressing concerns faced by the school beneficiaries during this pandemic,” said Dr. Marilyn Siao, DepEd Ormoc City Schools Division Superintendent.

Pedro G. Bañez National High School (PGBNHS) in Barangay Tongonan is one of the remote schools to receive these technology-based learning packages, along with L. Cabahug Elementary School and Manlilinao Elementary School. PGBNHS has a population of over 600 students and caters to learners from four neighboring barangays. It is 20 kilometers from the city proper and can only be accessed by motorcycles and private vehicles.

“We promise to properly utilize these learning devices and ensure to take care of these for our next generation of students,” said Gidget Jacer, School Head of PGBNHS.

“We are grateful for the opportunity to reach and help Ormocanon learners in far-flung communities. We hope these digital tools will help further their studies," said Karenina Buenafe, Senior Public Relations Manager of Huawei Philippines.

This initiative highlights PLDT and Smart’s #NoLearnerLeftBehind advocacy, which underscores the Group’s commitment to help the Philippines achieve the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal No. 4 on Inclusive Quality Education.