Does Filipino Youths really engage in today's government? Political Involvement/ Civic Engagement National Youth Commissions(NYC)/ Sangguniang Kabataan(SK) RESOURCE: • National Youth Commission.2015 cited in http://nyc.gov.ph. • Velasco, D. (n.d.) REJECTING “OLD-STYLE” POLITICS?Youth Participation in the Philippines cited in https://www.google.com/search?sclient=psy-ab&client=firefox-bab&btnG=Search&q=countrypapers_philippines+pdf&gfe_rd=cr&ei=ZjwTWf3bDcjEXtH_qPgG

1. YOUTH IN
NATIONAL YOUTH COMMISSIONS &
SANGGUNIANG KABATAAN

2. Who are the YOUTHS?
In the Philippines, the “Youth in Nation-Building
Act” (Republic Act 8044) defines youth as:
“… the critical period in a person’s growth and
development from the onset of adolescence
towards the peak of mature, self-reliant and
responsible adulthood comprising the
considerable sector of population from the age
of fifteen (15) to thirty (30) years of age.”

3. Youth Political
Participation???????????
A survey commissioned by the Episcopal
Commission on Youth of the Catholic
Church in 2002 reveals interesting trends
(cited by Rufo, 2003). Thus only 11.8
percent of young people polled believed
that being a responsible voter is the best
expression of love of country. Being law-
abiding (35.6 percent), speaking your
dialect (30.3 percent) and patronizing
Philippine products (19.9 percent) ranked
significantly higher.

4. Youth Political
Participation???????????
 Moreover, only four in ten say they are socially
involved in one-way or the other. 41.7 percent
say they’re “afraid to get involved,” followed
by 30.5 percent who feel their participation
“will not make a difference.” Close to 20
percent say social involvement is a “waste of
time.”

5. Youth Political
Participation???????????
Another nationwide survey conducted by NFO-
Trends (cited by Rimando, 2001) among
respondents aged seven to 21 years of age does
little to inspire hope either. It shows that only 75
percent are able to name their local chief
executive (mayor or village chief), while only half
were able to identify their representative in
Congress. And although young people on an
average watch 10 to 14 hours of television a
week, only one in two have read a newspaper in
the same span of time.

6. The 1987 Philippine Constitution
Article II, Section 13
The 1987 Constitution, in its declaration of principles and
state policies, explicitly states that
“The State recognizes the vital role of the youth in nation-
building and shall promote and protect their physical,
moral, spiritual, intellectual and social well-being. It shall
inculcate in the youth patriotism and nationalism, and
encourage their involvement in public and civic
affairs.” (Article II, Section 13).

7. Sangguniang Kabataan (SK)
ORIGIN:
It was no other than former
President Ferdinand
Marcos who first
enshrined youth
participation in politics.
The Kabataang Barangay
(KB) or “Village Youth”
was a youth organization at
the grassroots level created
in 1975.
The KB’s demise was
concurrent with the return to
constitutional democracy in
the aftermath of the 1986

8. Sangguniang Kabataan (SK)
•As a successor of the KB, the Sangguniang Kabataan
(SK) is a unique system of youth representation at the
grassroots level. As stipulated in the Local Government
Code of 1991, it provides for the election of barangay 2
youth councils by those from 15 to below 18 years of
age.
•The SK president is an automatic member of the
municipal or city council. Aside from participation in
local policy-making,
•the SK also receives a 10 percent allocation from the
barangay budget to implement youth oriented welfare
programs. With this mandate and fiscal elbowroom, the
SK is in a good position to harness youthful energies for

9. While SK councils in rich
areas have enough funds
to engage in feeding
programs and support
scholars, their
counterparts in poorer
barangays are struggling
“In many localities, the SK is
best known for staging beauty
contests and basketball
tournaments rather than
critically engaging in issues of
the day.”

10. “Although barangay politics
and the SK in particular are
supposed to be non-
partisan, it is often said
that the SK has become a
training ground for so -
called “trapolitos,” 3 who
are learning the ropes of
wheeling and dealing in
politics from their elders.”
In some places, SK
representatives are
children or relatives of
established politicians
who are being groomed
for higher office.

11. Sangguniang Kabataan (SK)
•There have been numerous legislative
proposals to abolish the SK altogether.
However, some progressive groups feel
uneasy about such moves.
•Comments Akbayan Youth leader Jonas
Bagas: “Corruption and incompetence in the
Sangguniang Kabataan is not a function of
age. It is a product of patronage politics and
the absence of transparency and
accountability in the use of public funds.

12. Sangguniang Kabataan (SK)
The Akbayan Citizens’ Action Party has filed a “SK
Reform and Empowerment Bill of 2005” in the
Philippine Congress, calling for the establishment of
Youth Development Councils to help in the formulation
and monitoring of annual youth development plans at
the local level. The bill further calls for an anti-
dynasty provision, the implementation of a check
and balance system, fiscal transparency and
expansion of the coverage of the SK from 15 to 17
years to 15 to 25 years of age.

13. National Youth
Commission(NYC)
•Republic Act No. 8044, otherwise
known as the “Youth in Nation
Building Act of 1995”, provides that
the NYC shall be the policy-making
coordinating body of all youth-
related institutions, programs,
projects and activities of the
government. (Section 6)
•The National Youth Commission,
also known as the NYC, is a
government agency
that specifically
addresses issues surrounding
the Filipino youth. It was founded
on the 30th of June 1995, via

14. National Youth
Commission(NYC)
Section 8 of the same Act provides further NYC’s
objectives, as follows:
a) to provide the leadership in the formulation of policies
and in the setting of priorities and direction of all youth
promotion and development programs and activities;
b) to encourage wide and active participation of the youth
in all governmental and non-governmental programs,
projects and activities affecting them;
c) to harness and develop the full potential of the youth as
partners in nation-building; and
d) to supplement government appropriations for youth
promotion and development with funds from other sources.

15. National Youth
Commission(NYC)
 Agency Goals
 For its long-term objectives, NYC took on a
thematic approach in formulating its updated
agency goals, that are now focused on two (2)
major areas of youth concern – youth participation
to disaster risk reduction and management
councils and improvement of youth in agriculture
services/programs and projects. Given this, the
two NYC goals to be pursued are:
 1) Institutionalization of youth participation in
disaster risk reduction and management councils;
and
 2) Increased accessibility and availability of youth
in agriculture programs and services.

16. National Youth
Commission(NYC)
Youth Development Program
1. Policy and Program Development and
Advocacy
2. Partnership and Network Building
3. Fostering Youth Participation in Community
Development and Good Governance

17. Policy and Program Development and
Advocacy
 Specific projects/activities include:
 National and Regional Youth Advisory Council
Meetings/Workshops, Policy Advocacy at RSDC/RDC-
conduct of quarterly national and regional policy advisory
mechanisms to support the formulation and advocacy of policy
advisories; also entails influencing the Regional
Social/Development Committees/Councils in adopting policy
advisories, and youth-led advocacy through the National Youth
Parliament delegates
 National Youth Assessment Study (NYAS)-updating of the
national youth situation through a nationwide survey that would
provide valuable inputs in the formulation of the next national
sectoral plan for the youth and to various proposed policy and
program measures
 Youth Development Index (YDI) Report-development of
annual YDI Studies that present a measure of the level of youth
development at the local levels; the information gathered shall

18. 2. Partnership and Network Building
 Specific projects/activities include:
 Mainstreaming of the National Action Plan on
Youth Employment and Migration (NAP-YEM)-
steering the structure to ensure that programs and
projects in the NAP-YEM are implemented leading to
the decrease of youth unemployment and
underemployment rates
 Registration Component of the Abot-Alam Project
for Out-of-School Youth (OSY)-maintenance of a
database developed to facilitate the registration of out-
of-school youth leading to their reintegration through
existing programs of various concerned national
government agencies

19. 3. Fostering Youth Participation in
Community Development and Good
Governance
 Youth Organizations’ Registration Program
 Pursuant to RA 8044, otherwise known as the “Youth
in Nation-Building Act” the National Youth Commission
shall register, help and facilitate the establishment of
Youth Organizations and Youth Serving Organizations.
 Through the nationwide registration of youth and
youth serving organizations, the Commission links up
with the youth and facilitates a more active
participation in its programs.
 Also, the NYC encourages YORP-registered Youth
Organizations to register with the Securities and
Exchange Commission (SEC).
 Please download thier information materials below or
visit their website at: www.sec.gov.ph.

20. 3. Fostering Youth Participation in
Community Development and Good
Governance
Ship for Southeast Asian Youth Program (SSEAYP)
 The Ship for Southeast Asian Youth Program (SSEAYP) is an
annual cultural exchange program that started in 1974 as a
joint statement between ASEAN member countries and
Japan. Participated by young people from these countries,
the program’s objective is to promote friendship and mutual
understanding among them and the local youth in their
respective countries.
Ten Accomplished Youth Organizations
 The Ten Accomplished Youth Organizations (TAYO) is an
annual search and recognition program for outstanding
contributions made by youth and youth serving organizations
nationwide. The awardees receive prizes that would enable
them to sustain their current efforts or develop and implement
new programs.

21. 3. Fostering Youth Participation in
Community Development and Good
Governance
Government Internship Program
 NYC serves as the secretariat of this program, which started
off as a summer work program for students.
 It is NYC’s contribution to the poverty alleviation program of
the government. NYC arranges for other government
agencies and private companies to hire out-of-school,
unemployed youth as interns who receive a monthly stipend
that is 75% of the minimum wage.
National Youth Parliament
 The NYP is a 3-day convention of youth leaders every two
years wherein policy recommendations are formulated to
address youth issues, and serve as government’s guide in
policy formulation and program development. Started in
1996, youth leaders gather every two years to share ideas
and gain valuable insights and networks to aid them in their
youth development efforts.

22. 3. Fostering Youth Participation in
Community Development and Good
Governance
NYC Volunteer Program
 NYC maintains a pool of youth volunteers which are mobilized in
support of NYC programs, projects and activities. NYC Volunteers
have been actively involved in the implementation of the Parliament
of Youth Leaders (NYP), SSEAYP, the National Greening Program
(NGP) among others.
Abot-Alam National Program for Out-of-School Youth
 Abot-Alam is a nationwide program with the vision of helping our
community-based youth through opportunities for education,
possible career and employment. It is a national strategy to
organize efforts in integrating programs for our out-of-school youth
(OSY).
National Action Plan for Youth Employment and Migration (NAP-
YEM)
 Aims is to reduce vulnerability of overseas/migrant workers by
promoting local employment and entrepreneurship