The Department of Education (DEPED) recently launched Project REACH (Reaching all Children) with its goal to bring back children to school.
According to Education Secretary Jesli Lapus, despite Philippine public education being free and compulsory, there are still so many school-age children and youth who are out in the streets, vulnerable to exploitation. Records from DepEd showed that there are about 5.6 million children and youth who are not in school.
