More than 2,000 Filipino kids — aged 14 to 17 years old — achieved a world record as they produced the longest line of pencils measuring 858.76 meters (around 2,817 feet) during the kick-off activity of National Children’s Month (NCM) celebration at the SM Mall of Asia over the weekend.
Authorities are now preparing the documents to make this the Philippines’ entry to the Guinness Book of World Records (GBWR).
Based on the measurement, the children were able to break the record set by the incumbent GBWR holder, Staedtler Mars GmbH and Co. KG in Nuremberg, Germany, on the longest line of pencils at 459.97 meters (around 1,509 feet), which had been set on Aug 5, 2015.
The participants holding four pencils each formed two lines at the seaside of the SM Mall of Asia early Sat, Nov 5, creating a long line of pencils.
The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), Council for the Welfare of Children (CWC), and the National Youth Commission (NYC), together with SM Super Malls organized the milestone event to symbolize that writing is a basic right of the youth.
DSWD Undersecretary Mae Fae Ancheta-Templa and Assistant Secretary Jose Antonio Hernandez witnessed the event and expressed solidarity with other government agencies, non-government organizations and local government units in ensuring that children’s rights are promoted and protected.
On the other hand, CWC Executive Director Patricia Luna announced that the One Million Lapis Campaign initiated by the agency and partners achieved its goal of collecting more than one million pencils.
The pencils collected from the campaign will be given to under privileged elementary students in 4th and 5th class municipalities. The campaign aimed to raise awareness on the need to provide quality education for all Filipino children, especially those in far-flung and remote barangays.
“Nakakolekta tayo nang mahigit 3 milyon lapis, kaya’t labis-labis po ang aming pasasalamat sa lahat nang nag-donate at nakipagtulungan upang maging matagumpay ang proyektong ito,” she said.
(“We were able to collect more than 3 million pencils, so thank you very much to all who donated and helped us in ensuring that this project turns out successful.”)
This year’s NCM theme is “Isulong: Kalidad na Edukasyon para sa Lahat ng Bata’, which emphasizes the importance of education as the key to the children’s brighter future. —Philippine Information Agency (PIA)
