Akbayan bet wants more educ budget

A CONGRESSIONAL candidate on Tuesday urged the government to boost the education sector’s budget to be on par with the United Nations’ (UN) education spending recommendation and address issues plaguing the Philippines’ school system.

A 2020 UN document recommended countries to spend at least 4-6% of their gross domestic product (GDP) or at least 15-20% of total public spending on education.

The Philippines allocated 3.6% of its GDP on education in 2023, World Bank data showed, with the country spending an average of 3.2% of its GDP on the education sector in the past decade, a Second Congressional Commission on Education (EDCOM II) report stated.

“If we want to address this education crisis and improve the learning outcomes of our students, we must aim for the recommendation of the United Nations and make it at least six percent of our gross domestic product and ensure that our money goes where it is supposed to go,” Jose Manuel “Chel” I. Diokno, Akbayan party-list’s nominee for the midterm elections, said in a statement.

He also recommended structural reforms to the education sector, such as increasing public school teachers’ wages and providing “well-reviewed” textbooks for Filipino students.

“We need to provide all the necessary support to our teachers — from adequate salary and other benefits — to sufficient supplies and materials for teaching, so they can effectively fulfill their duties to our students,” he said.

The Education department should also hone students’ competencies by strengthening their “basic numeracy and literacy skills” and expand feeding programs to address chronic height stunting of Filipino youth, said Mr. Diokno. — Kenneth Christiane L. Basilio