Section 6. Rights of Women. In partnership with ICC/IP women’s organizations and other GO/NGO support groups, the NCIP shall prepare and develop programs and projects to ensure that women shall fully participate in community and nation building through, among others, the following: a) Provision of appropriate support for women’s’ groups/ organizations to conduct research and document IP women’s traditional roles in marriage, family, community, political and economic life to determine gender issues and concerns among ICCs/IPs; b) Development of appropriate programs and projects to respond to gender issues and concerns as these relate to the full realization and protection of women’s rights for maximum participation in community and nation building; and c) Women community-based initiated projects aimed at empowering women shall be given priority in terms of financial and technical support. Section 7. Rights of Children and Youth. The NCIP in consultation with ICCs/IPs shall assess the situation of children and youth both in rural areas and highly urbanized centers with regards to the recognition, promotion and protection of their rights as provided in the Act and the Universal Declaration on the Rights of the Child. The NCIP shall work closely other government line agencies and international bodies, such as the Department of Education, Culture and Sports (DECS), the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), Department of Justice (DOJ), Commission on Human Rights (CHR), Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), International Organizations including the World Health Organization (WHO), the International Labor Organization (ILO) and the United Nations Children’s Educational Fund (UNICEF); with NGO support groups; and other agencies mandated to serve the sector and formulate programs and projects intended for their development and rearing of the children and youth belonging to the ICCs/IP communities. The NCIP shall ensure the establishment of an effective mechanism towards the protection of the rights of ICC/IP children and youth and more specifically the achievement of the following: a) Production of indigenous education literature about the indigenous culture in order to facilitate efforts at integrating such subject matter into the IP curriculum; b) Establishment of appropriate mechanisms in accordance with customary laws, for involving the children and youth in community leadership and decision making and relevant development programs and activities; c) Encourage and support the integration of ICCs/IPs IKSPs in both formal and non-formal educational systems for the formation of both male and female children and youth; d) Provision of technical training and education and the improvement and strengthening of regional state colleges, universities and technical schools with regards to their role in providing quality education, relevant to the needs, interests and aspirations of ICCs/IPs children and youth; and e) Use of IP dialect or language as the medium of instruction in early childhood and primary educational levels. The NCIP in close coordination with Department of Social Welfare and Development shall take special measures to prepare a culture-sensitive daycare program that ensures the holistic development and formation of IP children and affirms their cultural integrity. Section 8. Right to Education. In consultation with ICCs/IPs the NCIP shall work, in collaboration with the Department of Education, Culture and Sports (DECS), the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) and with private and public schools at all levels towards the development of appropriate programs and projects related to the following: a) The curricula and appropriate teaching materials and resources; Page 21