AusAid, USAID to participate in Brigada Eskwela

MANILA, Philippines - International donor agencies the Australian Agency for International Development (AusAid) and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) have pledged their participation in the Department of Education’s National Schools Maintenance Week or Brigada Eskwela Week effort next week.

Education Secretary Armin Luistro welcomed the pledge of the two major international donor agencies, saying that public schools all over the country needed all the help they can get from the private sector to prepare for the opening of classes for school year 2011 to 2012 on June 6.

AusAid and USAID will be adopting public schools for repair and repainting.

“We expect more pledges of participation from the private sector and hopefully international agencies as the Brigada - slated from May 23 to 28 - draws nearer,” said Luistro.

Brigada Eskwela is an annual effort of DepEd to call on local communities and the private sector to help their local schools to prepare for the school year opening, not only by giving money, but by actual “hands-on” assistance in clean up and repair activities.

It enjoins participants to donate construction and cleaning materials or serve as volunteers to prepare the schools two weeks before the opening of classes. It does not accept cash donations.

Last year, Brigada generated an equivalent amount of over P1.7 billion from donations in kind and manhours spent in school repairs which would have otherwise been taken from the maintenance and other operating expenses (MOOE) of public schools.

When Brigada was first launched in 2003, only 31% of all elementary and secondary public schools participated, but because of overwhelming response from the public and the bayanihan spirit that it engendered, it was made an institutional annual event in 2008. Since then, Brigada is 100 percent participated in by all public elementary and secondary schools nationwide.

Luistro said AusAid has committed to adopt schools for clean up and repair in Autonomous Region Muslim Mindanao while USAID chose three schools it will help repair and repaint.

Aside from AusAid and USAID, other participating companies and institutions include Ayala Foundation Inc., Coca-Cola Foundation Inc., GMA Kapuso Foundation Inc., IBM Phils., Intel Technology Phils., JVR Foundation, Microsoft Phils, Nutri-Asia Inc. and SouthEast Asia Food Inc., Philippine Business For Social Progress, ABS-CBN Foundation Inc., Smart Communication, Inc., San Miguel Corp., Philamlife and Unionbank, Rebisco Foundation, Standard Chartered Bank, FFCCCII, Fit for School, Hands on Manila Foundation and Autovention Corp., Crown Worldwide Movers, Inc., Mannasoft tech Corp., Networkers and Entrepreneurs Dev’t Cooperative and Wilkins Builder.

Brigada Eskwela won an Anvil Award in 2010, the only government line agency to receive the coveted public relations award.