SENATOR Juan Edgardo ‘Sonny’ Angara filed a measure seeking to recognize the role of the youth in society and institute programs to engage young Filipinos to participate in nation-building.

Senate Bill 2012 seeks to declare August 12 of every year as National Youth Day following the United Nations resolution designating the same date as the International Youth Day.

It also mandates all schools, colleges and universities to launch activities such as leadership training, youth empowerment, workshops, basic mass integration, and community immersion activities in celebration of National Youth Day.

Angara said the youth shape nations through their actions whether via social media, civic works, or pioneering and innovative industries.

“In fact, the theme of the 2020’s International Youth Day was ‘Youth Engagement for Global Action’ which, according to the United Nations, sought to highlight the ways in which the engagement of young people at the local, national and global levels in enriching national and multilateral institutions and processes,” he said in his explanatory note.

While the pandemic had dampened the prospects of many Filipino youth in gaining meaningful employment and has caused  an increase in mental health issues, the country benefited from the efforts of the youth especially during the early moments of the pandemic and the various lockdowns, Angara said.

“Outside those of the government’s, many of the relief operations and assistance programs, as well as movements to secure personal protective equipment for our frontliners, were initiated by young men and women,” he explained.

Senate Bill 2012 mandates the National Youth Commission in coordination with the Department of Education, Commission on Higher Education, and Technical Education and Skills Development Authority to prepare and implement an annual program of activities.

The youth organizations and youth-serving organizations shall likewise support the NYC in its effort to promote and facilitate related activities in all public and private schools.