Melo Villareal
A hands-on and interactive Children’s museum focused on the marine environment.
The Museo Sang Bata Sa Negros is the perfect place to visit for children, where they can learn while having fun. It is the first-ever marine museum in the Philippines located outside Metro Manila, a hands-on interactive children’s facility that aims to educate about the conservation of the marine environment.
But what does this museum exactly have to offer? Read on to discover what is Museo Sang Bata Sa Negros all about, from its objectives to the types of exhibits it houses!
About the Museum
The Museo Sang Bata Sa Negros (MSBN) is the first hands-on and interactive museum for children outside Metro Manila, focusing on the marine environment. Located on the Barangay Old Sagay shoreline, the Museo Sang Bata Sa Negros is beside the Sagay Marine Reserve (SMR), a 32,000 hectares marine protected area. About 90% of the people residing in and around the area depend on their livelihood and food on marine resources.
So apart from the hands-on exhibits, the museum also functions as an alternative learning center that educates on marine conservation and helps slowly change the perspective of the local communities on the environment through their programs. Its Marine Conservation Program has trained over 200 public elementary science teachers to help raise awareness and treasure the marine environment. Also, they offer the Museum Junior Program to children 8 to 12 years visiting the facility.
The museum aims to educate children residing in Northern areas of Negros, including Cadiz, Calatavra, Escalante, Manapla, Sagay, San Carlos, Toboso, and Victoria. Moreover, the beneficiaries of this museum in coastal areas are around 5,000 and 120,000 in Sagay City, including children, women, and men. Considering that the beneficiaries of the museum are mostly fisher folks’ children, the knowledge they obtained from the program will help them become good examples of conserving the environment.
Interesting Facts & Objectives
Founded on June 11,2003, the Museo Sang Bata Sa Negros was officially registered on November 5,2002, with only 7 staff and 30 volunteer guides. As part of the West Visayas Association of Museums, this facility aims to stimulate and awaken the children’s intellectual and creative capacity to understand, value, and discover themselves, other individuals, cultures, the environment, and the world.
It also instills high moral values and educates children on their roles in their local and global communities. In addition, the facility is a member of SAMP-the Intercontinental Museum Network funded by the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA).
Exhibit
When you visit the Museo Sang Bata Sa Negros, the first thing you will notice is the building which resembles the shape of a whale. As you enter the building, you’ll be greeted by a meaningful quote from Confucius “I hear, and I forget. I see, and I remember. I do, and I understand.” With its vision to be the leading museum for Negrense children, the Museo Sang Bata Sa Negros features marine animal live specimens and display objects that the visitors can teach for interactive learning.
On the ground floor, you’ll see exhibits of diverse marine life and threats caused by humans that are hazardous to the aquatic ecosystem and its inhabitants. Meanwhile, the second floor features the harmful effects of smoking and the varying life on the country’s islands. Children will also appreciate the international folk toys of Mara Montelibano and Butch Lopez McDonald’s Lacson toy collection.
Contact Details
Museo Sang Bata sa Negros
- Address: Barangay Old Sagay, Sagay City, Negros Occidental, Philippines, 6122
- Museum Hours: 8:00 am – 5:00 pm, from Monday to Friday
- Saturday to Sunday for special booked tours only
- Website: https://www.museosangbata.org/
- Telephone Number: +63 09177987420, +63 09186171736
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