The Iloilo provincial government gathered youth development stakeholders and partners in the province to celebrate the milestones of its teen center project during the Teen Center Summit 2025 on July 31 at Diversion 21 Hotel, Iloilo City.
The gathering brought together youth leaders, educators, legislators, and other stakeholders to share their best practices in addressing prevailing youth issues on mental health and teenage pregnancy.
In attendance are the municipal mayors, Sangguniang Bayan members, local youth development officers, teen center coordinators, guidance counselors, Sangguniang Kabataan Federation officials, school heads, and other program partners.
Provincial Population Officer Atty. Ruel Von Superio lauded the shared commitment of their convergent partners in building a better future for the Ilonggo youth.
“Today, we bring together our convergent partners: our policy and decision-makers, our passionate youth leaders and youth advocates, committed mentors, our program partners, key stakeholders, school administrators and community champions — all united in one mission and that is to strengthen and sustain collaborative efforts for the development and empowerment of our adolescents and youth through the Teen Center Program,” Superio said.
Gov. Arthur Defensor Jr. recalled the journey of the project which started way back during the time of his father and former governor Arthur Defensor Sr. He also recognized Provincial Administrator Raul Banias who pioneered the establishment of teen centers when he was then mayor of the municipality of Concepcion.
“The Teen Center project has come a long way from its beginning…It is what it is right now because of all of you. Because it is a convergence program,” the governor said.
The school-based teen center project started in 2011, with the provincial government providing equipment while the schools provide a room dedicated for the facility. In 2023, the Provincial Population Office upgraded it into the Teen Center 2.0 infrastructure project which involves the construction of a state-of-the-art building intended for teen centers.
As of 2025, a total of 102 teen centers have already been established in the province of Iloilo, including the 11 stand-alone buildings constructed in 10 municipalities and at the Iloilo National High School.
The initial 10 recipient municipalities are Balasan, San Dionisio, San Enrique, Dueñas, Pototan, Maasin, Alimodian, Santa Barbara, Oton, and Miagao.
Defensor stressed that the teen center buildings will be the home of the youth development programs in Iloilo.
The facility caters to various adolescent health and youth development programs aligned with the "MoRProGRes Iloilo" development mantra of Governor Defensor which aims to achieve a robust, progressive, globally-competitive, and resilient province of Iloilo.
It offers counseling to address the psychosocial needs of teenagers as well as lectures, youth forums, career guidance counseling, voter education, and even legal education, among others.
“We will continue to collaborate and converge for the total development of our youth. And we need the help of everyone,” the governor said. (Capitol news)