SUPPLEMENT FOR KIDS. School children in Tolosa town, Leyte province queue up to get bottles of vitamins. Over 200,000 elementary learners enrolled in all schools in Leyte province will be provided with PHP40 million worth of vitamins this academic year, the Department of Education announced Wednesday (Sept. 7, 2022).(Photo courtesy of Leyte provincial government) PALO, Leyte - Over 200,000 elementary learners enrolled in all schools in Leyte province will be provided with PHP40 million worth of vitamins this academic year, the Department of Education (DepEd) field office here announced on Wednesday. The project dubbed "Pangakong Proteksyon, Immunity for All Kids" will be providing a 60 ml bottle of Vitamin C and 120 ml bottle of multivitamins to every pupil in more than 1,500 public and private elementary schools in the province. DepEd Leyte schools division superintendent Manuel Albano said the vitamins provided by pharmaceutical firm Unilab will help in recovering the learning losses of children during the two-year distant learning. "We are very happy because we have this program that seek to address the health concerns of our children," Albano said in an interview. "We are grateful to the province of Leyte for its continuous support to DepEd and to Unilab, I hope that this is not the only partnership that we have. We hope to continue a partnership with you for the sake of our learners," he added. The project was launched in Leyte province on August 31 as part of their national campaign and the 50th year celebration of Unilab Pediatrica, according to brand manager Chester Ivan Cruz. Students from Palo I Central School in Palo town, Tanauan I Central School in Tanauan town, Daniel Z. Romualdez Elementary School in Tolosa town, Alangalang I Central School in Alangalang town, and Babatngon Central School in Babatngon town were the first learners to receive the vitamins. Nationwide, Unilab is targeting 10,000 schools as recipients of their vitamins. "We want to expand the assistance that we provide to schools by providing and giving vitamins to children especially now that face-to-face class had started," Cruz said. Through the provided vitamins, the company hopes all students are ready, protected, and have strong immunity as they attend their classes daily. The donation is in response to the request of Leyte Governor Carlos Jericho Petilla to Unilab to provide children vitamins to help improve their nutritional status. The provincial government asked parents to ensure that their children will take vitamins regularly and to ensure proper nourishment required at their age is given. (PNA) }