Mandated kindergarten gets P2.39-B boost from DBM

Budget Secretary Florencio Abad Jr.

The Department of Budget and Management (DBM) has released P2.39-billion support of mandatory kindergarten education to help “improve basic education and broaden its accessibility to all Filipinos.”

“With the Kindergarten Education Act now in place, we can give more Filipino children a stronger foundation for scholastic excellence and achievement,” said Budget Secretary Florencio B. Abad.

Under the law, Filipino children 5 years old and older are required to pass kindergarten before moving up to Grade 1—with the intention of kindergarten better preparing children for elementary school.

“Of course, the law will require funding for its efficient implementation, and the Aquino administration has addressed this need by releasing funds early,” Abad said.

“The early release will help facilitate the prompt execution of the universal kindergarten law for school year 2012-2013,” he said.

He explained that the fund was part of the P238.8-billion budget for basic education this year, noting that the 2012 budget for kindergarten education was higher than the P2.34 billion earmarked last year.

“The President is determined to meet the Millennium Development Goals, particularly with respect to providing quality education for all by 2015,” Abad said.

The MDGs are a set of minimum commitments that governments make to the United Nations to eradicate poverty, achieve universal primary education, promote gender  equality in education, reduce child mortality, improve maternal health, combat HIV/AIDS and ensure environmental sustainability by 2015.

In October, the DBM released P1.4 billion to fund universal preschool education aimed at helping to prepare children for formal schooling.

Of the amount, P1.38 billion was earmarked for the compensation of volunteer teachers while P32.4 million was for training and monitoring and other activities related to the implementation of the kindergarten program.