Brief Background
The Abot-Alam is a nationwide convergence program for out-of-school (OSY) youth ages 15-30 years old. The primary purpose of this program is to effectively address the needs of the fast growing numbers of Filipino youth who are not attending schools (i.e. dropped out and or never had schooling at all). The government has a lot to offer as we know it, but we still do not have a comprehensive/unified national framework on how to attain the government’s goal of EDUCATION FOR ALL thus the creation of Abot-Alam.
Spe
cific Objectives
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DATA BANKING – this will enable the government to know the total percentage (%) of OSYs in the country and where these OSYs are through the barangay targeting system;
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UNIFIED NATIONAL FRAMEWORK – unify the initiatives and resources of all government agencies, non-government organizations and institutions, volunteer groups, and all other
sectors mandated to solving the challenges of OSYs in the country;
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REINTEGRATION (EQUAL OPPORTUNITY) – ensure that all OSYs will be given equal access to programs and services of partner agencies and institutions.
Program Framework
Abot Alam program has two phases namely the DATA GATHERING/MAPPING andCOMMUNITY REINTEGRATION PROGRAM.
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Data Gatherin/Mapping refers to the information management system designed to locate and identify the OSYs. The system is patterned almost similar to the National Household Targeting System for Poverty Reduction (NHTS-PR) which was adopted by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) in implementing the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps).
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Community Reintegration Program refers to the process wherein OSYs will undergo the process of reintegration in their respective communities through the programs and services of the Department of Education and partner agencies and institutions. Part of the process would be to identify the skills and competencies of OSYs whether they would like to go back to school; undergo technical vocational skills training; or be gainfully employed.