BAGUIO CITY (PIA) – The National Authority on Child Care (NACC), an attached agency of the Department of Social
Welfare and Development, has taken its foster care and adoption advocacy to Baguio City to encourage more Filipino
families to open up, and extend love to children in need of a steady and happy home.

In a press conference on February 23, NACC Executive Director Janella Estrada Ejercito introduced NACC as the
newest attached agency of the DSWD. It was created through Republic Act 11642, or the Domestic Administrative
Adoption and Alternative Child Care Act enacted in January 2022.

“Nais po namin hikayatin lahat na buksan po ang inyong mga puso at tahanan para po sa mga batang
nangangailangan ng permanenteng pamilya na tunay po na magmamahal sa kanila,” Ejercito said.
[We would like to invite everyone to open their hearts and their homes for children who are in need of permanent
families who will truly love them.]

Ejercito explained that prospective adoptive parents and foster parents are the heroes of abandoned, neglected,
dependent, surrendered, orphaned, abused, and exploited children.

As adoptive and foster parents, they are heroes who have the courage to extend love, support and sacrifice to the
children who need them. They do their share in making the country a much safer place for the children, the youth and
for the entire Filipino society.

“As mandated under RA 11642, we are trying to take initiatives to curb the state of adoption. Kaya ngayong taon po ay
nag-launch kami nang aming AMPON campaign. Yung po yung “Anak, Magulang, Pamilya, Ordinaryo, pero
Natatangi. We should all be proud to be an AMPON. Kaya muli po umaasa kami na suportahan po natin ang legal
adoption sa Pilipinas, dahil ito ay para sa proteksyon po nang ating mga kabataan. Because of course, every child
deserves love and every child matters”, Estrada said.

[This year we have launched the AMPON campaign, which means “Child-Parent-Family Ordinary but Different. We
should all be proud to be an AMPON. That is why we are again hoping that we support legal adoption in the
Philippines because this is for the protection of the children. Because of course, every child deserves love and every
child matters.]

Ejercito explained that prospective adoptive parents and foster parents are the heroes of abandoned, neglected,
dependent, surrendered, orphaned, abused, and exploited children. As adoptive and foster parents, they are heroes
who have the courage to extend love, support and sacrifice to the children who need them. They do their share in
making the country a much safer place for the children, the youth and for the entire Filipino society.

NACC, through its regional alternative child care offices, has identified 1,424 children who are up for foster care or
adoption in the country, as of December 2023.

To further promote NACC and its services, the office joined in the Panagbenga Grand Float Parade on Sunday (Feb.
25), the biggest crowd-drawer in Baguio City gathering thousands of people from all walks of life.

Its floral float themed “Guardians of Hope: A Superhero's Blooming Legacy,” emphasized that raising a child (foster or
adopted) takes heroic strength and courage.

The "Guardians of Hope" floral float was a dazzling spectacle that captured the superhero impact of adoptive parents,
foster parents, and the dedicated, and passionate social workers and NACC employees have on the lives of orphans,
abandoned, and neglected children.

Towering above the vibrant floral arrangements was a life-size, meticulously crafted sculpture of Superman, the iconic
symbol of strength and compassion. The Man of Steel's outstretched arms symbolize the embrace of love and
protection that these caregivers provide to the children in their care. He hovered in a dynamic pose over a miniature
cityscape, surrounded by intricately designed buildings that symbolize the various backgrounds, challenges, and
environments that orphaned, abandoned, and neglected children face.

“Umaasa po kami na maitaas ang kamalayan nang publiko na meron pong ganitong ahensya nang gobyerno na
maaaring tumulong sa kanila, patungkol po sa adoption at alternative child care,” Estrada said.

[We hope to increase the level of awareness of the public that there is such a government agency that can help
regarding adoption and alternative child care.] (JDP/CCD-PIA CAR)