DepEd to end classroom shortage by 2014

MANILA, Philippines - With an approved budget of P238 billion for 2012 and a lot of help from the private sector, the Department of Education (DepEd) is confident of filling up the shortage of more than 66,000 classrooms and 100,000 teachers by 2014.

The proposed P238.8-billion budget of DepEd for 2012, which was passed by the House of Representatives and is already up for discussion at the Senate, represents a 15 percent increase from last year’s P207-billion budget. 

Of the increase, P14.5 billion will be allocated for retirement and life insurance premiums of employees and P8.9 billion will go to the miscellaneous personnel benefits fund.

Of the remaining P215.1 billion, P167.1 billion will go to salaries of its personnel, including P2.8 billion in additional annual allocation for the 13,000 new teachers, and funds for the scheduled increase in wages of government employees in 2012. 

Teachers’ basic pay will be increased to P18,549 from P17,099 this year once the fourth and final wave of increases under the Salary Standardization Law III is put into effect next year. 

This wage hike will make their total monthly gross pay surpass P20,000.

“By 2014, we will only construct classrooms based on expected increase in student population,” Education Secretary Armin Luistro said.

DepEd is allocating P21.7 billion for capital outlay and plans to use over P18 billion to construct and repair a total of 15,000 classrooms and install 25,000 sanitation facilities. 

An additional 30,000 classrooms are to be constructed through public-private partnership, bringing the total target to 45,000 classrooms in just one year. 

The agency will also buy 2.5 million school seats to match the expected increase in student population when school year 2012-2013 starts in June next year. 

Meanwhile, P1.8 billion will be used for the procurement of IT equipment and textbooks, and to sustain the Internet connection of 7,000 public high schools nationwide.

DepEd laid out the budget spending plan in pursuit of transparency and to keep the public informed of its plans to improve basic education in the country.

“More than just being transparent, this is also our way of assuring the public that we heed their call to close resource gaps and we are doing our mighty best to achieve our targets,” Luistro said.

Another P26.3 billion will be used for maintenance and other operating expenses that will pay for utilities and minor repairs of schools as well as for the purchase of supplies and materials like chalk and paper. 

From this amount will come P6.3 billion that will increase the number of beneficiaries under the Government Assistance for Students and Teachers in Private Education (GASTPE).

GASTPE provides alternative opportunities to deserving graduating elementary students whose families cannot afford to send them to private schools, and are supported until they finish 4th year high school while complying with the minimum academic requirements of the program.

Some P324 million will go to DepEd-attached agencies, such as the Philippine High School for the Arts, the National Council for Children’s Television, the National Book Development Board, and the National Museum.