 The Ministry of Education is commemorating World Children's Day, observed on Friday, November 20, with an important message. Chief Education Officer with the Department of Education, Innovation and Gender Relations, Dr. Fiona Philip Meyer, is encouraging Saint Lucians to start to see children as a valuable part of our society. Our children are people. Our children have a voice. As adults, we continue to make decisions for them. And sometimes we do not take enough time to listen to them to ensure that what they have to say is taken into account. So this is an appeal to listen. This is an appeal to engage. This is an appeal to applaud our children. And while I do that, I must applaud the parents, the educators, the community activists, the people who are on the ground really, really supporting children and making sure that they feel a valued part of the nation's society. So for me in the capacity of Chief Education Officer, I've had to deal with situations of late, two very specific ones involved in our students who were hurt in two separate incidents, two of our boys, unfortunately. And at every juncture, it speaks to, you know, how can we be more empathetic, more caring, more loving, more encouraging, more positive to our children? Because sometimes it is really that they go through a lot of their pains and hurts. And we may not always reach them as educators, but if we do it collectively, our parents, our community activists, together with educators, that triangle can be so strong. So for us, we wish all our children happy International Children's Day. We wish you were with us at school, but you're not what we want to encourage parents. Take some time. Take some time to really show our children that they're valued, that they matter. And so it is to say to us, you know, this too shall pass. The pandemic will be over at some point. But in the meantime, let us manage effectively, let us deal with it well so that our children come out of it even more resilient, they can persevere and they can also problem solve when there is a situation. So, dear parents, help us in wishing our children happy International Children's Day as we continue as an education system to really look out and to try our best to make sure that no one falls through the cracks. Dr. Maya says she has to deal with incidents where children are hurt. These situations, Dr. Maya notes, speak to the need for more empathy, love, care and encouragement when dealing with children. Because sometimes it is really that they go through a lot of their pains and hurts and we may not always reach them as educators. But if we do it collectively, our parents, our community activists, together with educators, that triangle can be so strong. So for us, we wish all our children happy International Children's Day. We wish you were with us at school, but you're not what we want to encourage parents. Take some time. Take some time to really show our children that they have valued, that they matter. And so it is to say to us, you know, this too shall pass. Dr. Maya says although school is currently restricted to online learning due to COVID-19, the pandemic will soon come to an end. She says with effective management of the situation, children can become more resilient, learn perseverance and problem solving skills.