AN ACT MANDATING THE PROVISION OF EMERGENCY RELIEF AND PROTECTION FOR CHILDREN BEFORE, DURING, AND AFTER DISASTERS AND OTHER EMERGENCY SITUATIONS

Sixteenth Congress
Third Regular Session

Begun and held in Metro Manila, on Monday, the twenty-seventh day of July, two thousand fifteen.

REPUBLIC ACT No. 10821

AN ACT MANDATING THE PROVISION OF EMERGENCY RELIEF AND PROTECTION FOR CHILDREN BEFORE, DURING, AND AFTER DISASTERS AND OTHER EMERGENCY SITUATIONS

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines in Congress assembled:

SECTION 1. Short Title. – This Act shall be known as the “Children’s Emergency Relief and Protection Act”.

SECTION 2. Declaration of Policy. – It is hereby declared the policy of the State to protect the fundamental rights of children before, during, and after disasters and other emergency situations when children are gravely threatened or endangered by circumstances that affect their survival and normal development. Guided by the principles on survival and development, on child participation, and consistent with the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, as well as the Children’s Charter for Disaster Risk and Reduction, and the minimum standards for children in humanitarian action, the State shall establish and implement a comprehensive and strategic program of action to provide the children and pregnant and lactating mothers affected by disasters and other emergency situations with utmost support and assistance necessary for their immediate recovery and protection against all forms of violence, cruelty, discrimination, neglect, abuse, exploitation and other acts prejudicial to their interest, survival, development and well-being.

SECTION 3. Definition of Terms. – For the purposes of this Act, the following shall refer to:

SECTION 4. Comprehensive Emergency Program for Children. – The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) shall formulate a Comprehensive Emergency Program for Children, hereinafter referred to as the Program, taking into consideration humanitarian standards for their protection. The Program shall be used as the basis for handling disasters and other emergency situations to protect children, pregnant and lactating mothers, and support their immediate recovery. This shall be implemented immediately after the declaration of a national or local state of calamity or occurrence of any other emergency situation.

The DSWD shall engage all relevant government agencies and stakeholders for the implementation of the Program. Local government units (LGUs) shall integrate the same in their development and Local Disaster Risk Reduction and Management (LDRRM) plans and budget.

The Program shall be gender-sensitive and have the following components:

Establishment of Evacuation Centers. – LGUs shall establish and identify safe locations as evacuation centers for children and families subject to the limitations found in Section 5 of this Act.

(4) Consulting with the affected children on their needs and priorities for post-disaster relief and recovery.

SECTION 5. Evacuation Centers. – Only in cases where there is no other available place or structure which can be used as a general evacuation center may a school or child development center be used as an evacuation center.

When a school or child development center is used as an evacuation center, gymnasiums, learning and activity centers, auditoriums and other open spaces shall be utilized first. Classrooms shall only be used as a last resort. The use of the school premises shall be as brief as possible. If the use is predicted to exceed fifteen (15) days, the affected LGU shall provide written documentation to the DepED and the DILG on the following:

The DepED, in coordination with the DPWH, shall continuously monitor and assess the condition of temporary learning spaces or other transitional and semi-permanent structures used as classrooms after a disaster, and if the use exceeds six (6) months after the declaration of a state of calamity, the regional DepED office shall conduct regular site inspections and shall certify to the Secretary of Education that such spaces are in good physical condition and sufficient to ensure the safety of the children and their environment.

SECTION 6. Orphaned, Unaccompanied, or Separated Children. – The DSWD, upon consultation with relevant agencies, shall develop a minimum set of standards and guidelines for the Family Tracing Reunification System of orphaned, unaccompanied and separated children.

Orphaned children, and unaccompanied or separated children whose families or relatives cannot he found or assessed to be incapable of providing proper care and protection shall be placed in a licensed or accredited residential care facility or with a foster family in accordance with Article 140 of the Child and Youth Welfare Code, or a community-based center. A registered social worker shall provide the needed case management and intervention.

SECTION 7. System of Restoring Civil Registry Documents. – To ensure that vital information pertaining to the personal circumstances of a child are adequately protected and available at all times, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) shall develop a system for the restoration and reconstruction of civil registry documents that have been destroyed or declared lost or missing during a disaster or calamity.

The PSA shall submit a report on the number of restored or reconstructed documents to appropriate government agencies for effective monitoring and reporting and to ensure the continued access of the affected children to social services and facilitate the’ reunification of separated children with their families.

The PSA shall likewise develop a system for the registration of children born during a national or local state of calamity.

SECTION 8. Training of Emergency Responders on Child Protection. – The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) shall promote and conduct a child-responsive training program for all responders in the calamity area such as community and barangay leaders, community members, school personnel and other rescuers. The training program shall include the following:

Each member agency shall include or mainstream child protection in their emergency response training to service providers.

SECTION 9. Data Gathering, Monitoring, and Reporting. – The agencies mandated by this Act shall monitor and report on the implementation of services under the Program to be submitted jointly to Congress annually. The report shall include a specific section on pregnant women and children under five (5) years of age as a strategy to address the post-disaster nutrition needs of children under age five (5) and pregnant women.

In the aftermath of a national or local state of calamity, the collection and reporting of data for the Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Information System at all levels, as provided for in Republic Act No. 10121, shall be disaggregated by age, gender, ethnicity, and special needs. Such collected data shall be utilized to understand and respond better to the needs of children affected by disasters and calamities.

Within five (5) days from the declaration of a national state of calamity or as soon as practicable, the DSWD and the DILG shall jointly submit written documentation and report on their surveillance and monitoring under Section 4(d) to the appropriate committees of the Senate and the House of Representatives.

SECTION 10. Appropriations. – The amount necessary for the initial implementation of this Act shall be charged against the current appropriations of the DSWD, Office of Civil Defense (OCD), DepED, DOH, Department of National Defense (DND) and PSA. Thereafter, the amount needed for the continued implementation of this Act shall be included in the annual

General Appropriations Act. For LGUs, the implementation of the programs shall be charged against the Local Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Fund (LDRRMF).

SECTION 11. Implementing Rules and Regulations. – Within ninety (90) days from the effectivity of this Act, the DSWD, in consultation and coordination with the DND, OCD, DOH, DepED, DILG, PNP, AFP and child-focused CSOs shall promulgate the necessary rules and regulations for the effective implementation of this Act.

SECTION 12. Interpretation Clause. – The provisions of this Act and its implementing rules and regulations shall be liberally construed in favor of the best interest of the child.

SECTION 13. Separability Clause. – If any provision or part of this Act is declared invalid or unconstitutional, the remaining parts or provisions not affected shall remain in full force and effect.

SECTION 14. Repealing Clause. – All laws, executive orders, presidential decrees, rules and regulations or parts thereof inconsistent with any provision of this Act are hereby repealed, amended or modified accordingly.

SECTION 15. Effectivity. – This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its publication in the Official Gazette or in a newspaper £f general circulation.

Approved,

Senate Bill No. 3034, which was approved by the Senate on February 1, 2016, was adopted as an amendment to House Bill No. 5285 by the House of Representatives on February 2, 2016.

Approved: MAY 18 2016

(Sgd.) BENIGNO S. AQUINO, III
President of the Philippines