THE Department of Education on Wednesday launched the improved school mental health program and the school-based feeding program at the Esteban Abada Elementary School in Quezon City.

Vice President and Education Secretary Sara Duterte said the COVID-19 pandemic has shown how important mental health is, especially for kids and teens.

“It has highlighted long-ignored issues in this area. Our school-based feeding program has also had to adapt, providing nutritious food products instead of hot meals, making it harder to ensure our students are well-nourished,” Duterte said.

“But we will not stop, we will do even more. Today, we launch the school mental health program and the school-based feeding program for fiscal year 2024, both improved and more attuned to our learners’ needs. As the DepEd Secretary and a mother, I believe these programs are crucial for our students’ mental and physical well-being,” she added.

The school mental health program aims to create a safer and supportive environment for learners, where they feel valued and heard.

“We will continue to work closely with experts, teachers, and school leaders to provide support and referrals for students facing mental health challenges,” Duterte said.

“Together, we have worked hard, and among our key wins was the first-ever special provision for school-based mental health programs in 2023 and the establishment of the first mental health unit within the Department of Education. We also trained teachers to spot mental health problems, taught over 10,000 personnel about psychological first aid, and expanded our network of partners in mental health. Because of all these efforts, we reduced the number of undocumented learner suicides by 65 percent,” the DepEd chief added.

Duterte said they have increased the mental health budget for 2024 to P200 million.

“This will help make our schools psychologically safer, with plans to add mental health services to our Learners’ TeleSafe Hotline and establish mental health teams in each region,” she added.

Meanwhile, the improved school-based feeding program provides nutritious meals and milk to kindergarten and undernourished Grades 1 to 6 students.

“For 2024 to 2025, our budget has doubled to 11.7 billion pesos, making each meal more cost-effective. This has earned recognition from global organizations, highlighting the Philippines as a school health and nutrition leader,” Duterte said.

“I’m immensely proud of the school-based feeding program, which not only improves students’ health but also supports local farmers, food producers, cooperatives, and small and medium enterprises. We’ve collaborated with various agencies to ensure a steady supply of nutritious food products, and we’ve worked with experts to develop milk products for our students,” the DepEd chief added.