The Philippines

The Philippines is made up of more than 7,000 tropical islands and had a population of 90 million. The country has a tropical marine climate with a dry season (Nov-April) and a rainy season (May-Oct).

The capital Manila – Metro Manila – is a sprawling cluster of 17 cities with municipalities such as Manila, Quezon, Makati, Pasay, and so on generating a populace to guess at; perhaps start at ten million and keep counting.

Manila has a high population density, with one district having over 68,000 people per square kilometres so at times it may feel a little crowded especially if you have just arrived from London which has about 8,000 people per square kilometres.

Tagalog is the national language and English is used for official/business purposes.

There are 54 other languages with over 140 dialect variations.

The Philippines has the world’s third largest English speaking population.

The Good Samaritan Sisters in the Philippines:

The Catholic Religious of Japan (even though few in number), had the desire to stand in solidarity with the poor in Asia in the 1980’s.

In 1990, two Japanese sisters established a community in Bacolod on the island of Negros, one of the poorest areas in the Philippines.

In 2004, the sisters started a Kinder School for poor children. This is the gateway to education because even though government schooling is free, very few attend unless there is access to early education. A health clinic and feeding programme is also available at the kinder school.

Today, the community is comprised with sisters who desire to seek in God and the way of life.