Tacloban City, located 360 miles southeast of Manila, is the capital of the large island of Leyte in the Visayas region of the Philippines. The island is known for the landing of the American General MacArthur, during World War II, which liberated the Philippines from Japan. With a population of 300,000, the Filipinos in Tacloban speak the Waray-Waray dialect, as well as Tagalog (the national language), English, and Cebuano. Tacloban City, is not a tourist destination, so it is a great opportunity for our volunteers to be immersed in a unique Asian culture.
The people of the Philippines are highly educated. The literacy rate of Tacloban City is 97.3%. Despite the high literacy rate, the unemployment rate is 8.4%. Although the literacy rate is high, the quality of education in the rural areas is very poor. With minimal resources, it is a challenge for the local teachers to instruct the basic subjects in school. It is common for children in rural communities to drop out of school early to help out on the rice farms and provide additional income for their family.

Both in the cities and the rural areas, the people are suffering from the country’s struggling economy. The average family income is only 134,183 Pesos (approximately $2400) per year. The people in the rural communities have little access to health care and rely on religion and natural remedies to get them through the tough times.