P31.8-B to shore up targeted 22,325 classroomsto promote implementation of K-12 Program

In response to the country’s growing population of students, the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) has released P31.8 billion to the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) for the proposed construction or rehabilitation of 22,325 classrooms nationwide as determined by the Department of Education (DepEd) to ultimately bolster the K-12 program.

The amount of P31.8 billion will be charged against the DepEd’s Provision and Maintenance of Basic Educational Facilities—also known as the Basic Educational Facilities Fund (BEFF)— in their FY 2014 Budget (RA 10633, Continuing Appropriations) and FY 2015 Budget (Republic Act 10651).

“Every year, we face the need to build more classrooms due to the growing number of public school students. Fortunately, we’re able to keep pace by allotting yearly increases in budgetary support for quality classrooms. With enough public funds for our education system, we can construct new school buildings or rehabilitate damaged classrooms,” said Budget Secretary Florencio “Butch” Abad.

“This takes time as the process of determining the number of targets is very exhaustive, with DepEd giving us a list of classrooms only after a thorough assessment. But we’re confident of achieving these requirements as the success of the Administration’s K-to-12 school program depends on our efforts,” Abad added.

Of the total P31.8 billion, P3.47 billion has been charged against the P44.6-billion FY 2014 GAA BEFF.

The P3.47 billion is specifically allocated to the BEFF for the “construction, replacement, and completion of kindergarten, elementary, and secondary school buildings and the construction of water and sanitation facilities,” as stated in the GAA. Likewise, this is supposed to “address remaining shortages and meet the requirements of the K-12 Basic Education Program.”

On the other hand, the remaining P28.3 billion—divided into two releases—is charged against the P53.9-billion FY 2015 GAA BEFF. The P28.3 billion is specifically allocated to the BEFF for the “construction, replacement, and/or completion of kindergarten, elementary, and secondary school buildings and technical vocational laboratories, and the construction of water and sanitation facilities” as stated in the GAA.

Both amounts were released directly to the DPWH, which has the task of implementing the construction of the classrooms based on a list of school buildings and work program submitted by the DepEd.

Majority of the 22,325 targeted classrooms will be in Regions VII, VIII, and IV-A. The following is a breakdown of the total number of classrooms targeted per region:

CAR, 241; CARAGA, 1,630; NCR, 534; Region I, 537; Region II, 446; Region III, 1,480; Region IV-A, 2,016; Region IV-B, 185; Region V, 1,692; Region VI, 908; Region VII, 3,674; Region VIII, 2,395; Reion IX, 1,224; Region X, 1,689; Region XI, 1,833; and Region XII, 1,841.

“This fund release accomplishes two crucial things. It promotes the proper implementation of the K-to-12 program, and it creates  a safe learning environment for our students under the Administration’s Build-Back-Better policy. Not only do we give our students the school facilities they need; we’re also making sure that these structures can withstand possible damage from calamities,” Abad said. (DBM)