NEGROS Occidental 3rd District Rep. Jose Francisco “Kiko” Benitez filed a measure that will align basic and early childhood education.

House Bill 8393 or the proposed Basic Education and Early Childhood Education Alignment Act seeks to align Early Childhood Care and Development programs with existing programs on maternal and child health and nutrition.

The bill also mandates the ECCD Council to ensure the alignment of ECCD curriculum with the basic education curriculum and programs for learners with disability.

Benitez cited a recent study that 28.8 percent of Filipino children under five years old or 3.7 million were stunted, making the Philippines the country with the third highest prevalence of stunting in ASEAN.

UNICEF said that in 2019, preschool among children ages three to four years. This dropped to 47 percent in 2020 because of the Covid19 pandemic.