Bhutan group visits TYKFI for best practices programs
A nine-member delegation from Bhutan’s Ministry of Education visited the Tan Yan Kee Foundation Inc. (TYKFI) compound in Carranglan, Nueva Ecija on Sept.4, to observe and understand how the Foundation runs its programs in education, social welfare, and protection of the environment.
The delegation headed by Sherab Phuntshok, chief program officer of the Ministry of Education, is composed of program officers from the districts of Mongar, Jongkhar, Pem Gatshel, Trongsa, Lhuentse and Wangdue. The Bhutanese delegates also came to observe the best practices of the local Early Childhood Care and Development (ECCD) program with their counterpart ECCD officers from the Philippines and a representative of the Asia Pacific Regional Network on Early Childhood (ARNEC) from Singapore. Bhutan is a constitutional monarchy and is located in the Eastern Himalayas.
The Foundation officers briefed the Bhutan delegation about how its various programs are able to meet the environmental, social and governance (ESG) standards through provision of quality services and care of its employees and beneficiaries, specifically its scholars, marginalized individuals, forest workers, farmers and their families. The Foundation likewise looks forward to the sustainability of its programs by providing more scholarships, livelihood opportunities through agroforestry projects, training programs, health care, calamity assistance, and housing projects with the support of sister companies like Philippine Airlines, ETON Properties, (Phils.), Tanduay Distillers and PMFTC.
The Foundation also provided the Bhutan visitors an overview of the Foundation’s program in education which adopts a holistic approach by supporting children and scholars from pre-nursery to college and post graduate school.
The Foundation supports the country’s Early Childhood Care and Development Program and young pupils from elementary schools like the Tan Yan Kee Elementary School with school and training supplies, scholarships like the UE-TYKFI Scholarship Program, the TYKFI –St. Teresita’s Academy Scholarship Project for farmers’ children, the Nueva Vizcaya State University Scholarship Project for forestry and agricultural college scholars, the TYKFI-ABI Medical Scholarship Program for doctors and the TYKFoundation for Liberty and Prosperity Scholarship for law students.
In support of the national greening program, Dr. Lucio C. Tan, TYKFI’s chairman and president, launched the Legacy Forest Project in 2014 with the goal of mitigating the effects of the environment’s alarming situation due to forest degradation. Dr. Tan continues to look for what the Foundation could do for the future generations, especially by protecting the environment, enriching the natural resources and its biodiversity and providing sustainable livelihood agroforestry projects for the marginalized members of society.
On Sept. 5, TYKFI officers joined the Bhutanese delegates on a courtesy call at the Office of the Aritao Mayor in Nueva Vizcaya to share experiences in implementing the ECCD program at the local government level among the different stakeholders.