News Update ‘Kuya Efren’ is ambassador of literacy campaign

QUEZON CITY, METRO MANILA - Technology firm HP has signed up Efren Peñaflorida, head of Dynamic Teen Company (DTC) and the 2009 CNN Hero, to serve as its “ambassador” for a nationwide literacy campaign for young people. The project called “A+” campaign would be a year-long project wherein the company would embark on a series of activities geared towards improving writing skills and reading comprehension of young people in basic education. The start of the campaign is “Write&Read”, which is a creative story-writing contest that would have a category for students from Grades 4 to 7 and high school. The winning entries will be compiled into a book - printed using an HP printer, no less - and distributed to various schools including the “kariton klasrum” that Peñaflorida is advocating. HP partnered with the Department of Education (DepEd) to promote the contest. In an interview, HP General Manager for Imaging and Printing Group Armando Pascual said the goal is to help students in elementary and high school improve their literacy skills. The presence of Peñaflorida in these activities would help encourage students, teachers, and parents to contribute to the same cause. Pascual said other projects are being discussed, though most of these will be along the same lines as their Write&Read project. For his part, Peñaflorida said that the involvement of private firms such as HP would help encourage more companies to be involved in such activities. He stressed that companies will also benefit in the long run and that education should be a proper investment for them. “Children who were able to read and write early in their lives tend to become productive members of society after they graduate. They would become good employers or entrepreneurs in the future,” Peñaflorida said. *** loQal.ph (http://loqal.ph/ ) is a website owned and operated by Filquest Media Concepts, Inc. It works under the principle of giving voice to the voiceless, empowering Filipinos and uplifting the image of the Philippines by highlighting its unique culture. To do this, the loQal.ph team produces stories, video, photos and other multimedia content types to inspire and celebrate Filipino achievements, ideas, products and places.