Village Partnerships: Batotitik
Partner: The Bullen Ultrasonics
Population: N/A
Households: N/A
Status: Active
Location: Batotitik is a city located in Barangay Basag, T'boli, South Cotabato
GPS Coordinates: N/A
Village History
Batotitik is a city located in Barangay Basag, T’boli, South Cotabato. The majority of the residents are B’laans (80%), who are part of the tribal communities in the Philippines and considered indigenous to the country. They are isolated and discriminated against by the larger Filipino community.
As such, achieving an education has been the only way for most tribal members to integrate into the larger society. However, only half of the children in the B’laan tribe attend school and a mere 11% graduate high school. Due to the low value placed on people from the B’laan tribe, child labor, sex trafficking, and forced prostitution are prevalent, especially in Mindanao where there are additional struggles due to extreme poverty and political instability. Over 50% of the girls from the B’laan tribe are forced into child prostitution once they reach 13 years of age.
To address this concern, World Hope International in partnership with the Wesleyan Church began to sponsor children in the Batotitik area in 1997. Currently 650 children are supported with school tuition, uniforms, scholastic materials and more in order to fulfill their full potential through education. The program has helped transform the lives of the children by decreasing early marriage and improving self-confidence.
Completed Activities & Impact
The Bullen Ultrasonics started their partnership with the Batotitik village in the Philippines in March 2016 to decrease child prostitution within the Batotitk Mission Academy and surrounding community.
Education
We are pleased to report that in 2016, 215 students attend Batotitik Mission Academy, an increase of 51% from two years ago, thanks to the help of World Hope International. To continue protecting these boys and girls from early marriage, forced labor and human trafficking, the school hosted the following programs:
Feeding program: Lunch was provided to the children 2 to 3 times a week as many of them come to school hungry without eating breakfast; and, Friday/ Saturday night classes for girls: activities included sports, movie marathons, and community development classes such as cooking and other personal development courses. The girls are also made aware of who they need to contact if they face any trouble at home or in their neighborhood.
Additionally, to develop the girls’ confidence, extracurricular activities in the school, such as intramurals and community games, dance demonstrations, drum and bugle corps, choir, and kickball, were organized. Every Friday during PE class, the girls practiced volleyball and softball. Moreover, the girls attended church service on a weekly basis to grow in their relationship with Jesus by learning more about the Bible and thanking Him for the many blessings. They also participated in Sunday school, youth fellowship and camp rallies.
Finally, two cooking classes were conducted for 35 teen girls. They learned to make delicacies such as polvoron, yema candy and palabok. With these new acquired skills, they can teach their mothers and/or begin a small business selling these products at the market. Five kilograms of rice were given to 30 girls in the program after each cooking class to help prevent resentment from the families for keeping the girls from helping contribute to family incomes.
These activities will continue in 2017.