DepEd Proposes 18% Budget Increase for 2015

Manila (PNA) — The Department of Education (DepEd), during the budget hearing on Monday at the House of Representatives committee on appropriations, presented its proposed Php364.959 billion budget for 2015, an increase of 18 percent from this year’s Php309.415 billion.

The DepEd said an amount of Php255.2 billion was allotted to Personnel Services; Php41.461 billion for Maintenance and other operating expenses (MOOE); and Php68.248 billion for Capital Outlay.

The bulk of the proposed budget goes to its programs with a proposed allocation of Php316.862 billion. Locally-funded projects get Php231 million, and special purpose funds/other sources has an allocation of Php25.667 billion which includes miscellaneous personnel benefits fund.

Its attached agencies such as the Philippine High School for the Arts (PHSA) gets Php125.427 million; National Council for Children’s Television (NCCT) Php31.101 million; National Book Development Board (NBDB) Php23.199 million; and National Museum Php1.640 billion.

The DepEd said it will be hiring around 39,066 teachers next year as the agency allots Php9.35 billion for such.

An amount of Php3.46 billion was also allocated for the acquisition of 70 million learning materials; and Php8.4 billion to sustain the one million grantees of Government Assistance to Students and Teachers in Private Education (GASTPE).

Moreover, around Php4 billion was allotted for 7,733 Science and Math equipment package; Php8.53 billion for 24,208 E-classroom package; Php1.37 billion for 630,000 severely wasted and wasted learners in school-based feeding program; and Php1.97 billion for one million out-of-school youths for the Abot-Alam program.

Gearing the education department for the full implementation of K to 12 curriculum, some 31,728 classrooms are set to be built next year; repair and rehabilitation of 9,500 classrooms; provision of 1.3 million seats; and establishment of 13,586 water and sanitation facilities.

An amount of Php1.137 billion will be provided for the building of 455 tech-voc laboratories; and another Php2.05 billion is being set for the training and re-tooling of 160,000 teachers on the K to 12 curriculum.

Since 2010, the DepEd has been able to reach 1.16 million Muslim students; 1.19 million indigenous people (IP) learners; 801,997 Multigrade program learners; 75,233 Alternative delivery mode learners; built 980 open high schools; and mapped 1.2 million out-of-school youths who have been reached by Abot-Alam program. (PNA) LGI/JDM