In Barangay Dalipuga, Iligan City, learning just got a much-needed upgrade—and it shows. A cramped, poorly ventilated plywood room that once doubled as a daycare has been replaced by a new concrete facility under Project EduCare, giving young children a space that finally feels like it was built with them in mind.
The change is more than cosmetic. For around 50 children expected to use the center this year, the new daycare offers something the old setup could not. It offers a room to breathe, move, and learn without the distractions of heat, noise, and tight quarters. Inside, the space is now equipped with toys, learning tools, and child-sized furniture designed to support early development, not just supervision.
The project, implemented through Pilmico Foods Corp., the Aboitiz Foundation and the Barangay Dalipuga local government, reflects a growing recognition that early childhood education doesn’t begin with textbooks. It begins with the environment—where nurture quietly shapes what nature alone cannot.
“For us, nourishing the future is about making a meaningful impact for generations to come,” said Engr. Alexis Revantad, vice president for Iligan Site Management and Flour Operations. “Investing in this center means investing in our future leaders, thinkers and changemakers.”
Barangay Chairwoman Nilda Hamoy called the facility “a symbol of hope and opportunity,” though in practical terms, it is also a quiet correction of a long-standing gap—where early learning spaces in many communities were often improvised rather than intentionally built.
That distinction matters. Education advocates note that early childhood environments shape more than school readiness; they influence confidence, social behavior and cognitive development at a stage when children absorb the world almost entirely through experience.
The project also aligns with Republic Act No. 12199, which strengthens early childhood care and development programs nationwide, pushing for more structured and supportive learning environments for young children.
In Dalipuga, that policy now has a physical form: a small but purposeful building where play and learning finally meet halfway.
