SINCE local governments will take on a more active role in aiding public schools in their areas, some local officials plan to get funding from their general fund —aside from the Special Education Fund (SEF)—for financial support and technical assistance to accelerate the adoption of distance learning of school children.
Pasig City Mayor Vico Sotto said they will continue to support the Department of Education (DepEd) as the city strengthens their “participatory governance, school governing councils, expanded local school boards, scholarship programs and many more.”
Sotto said at a “Handang Isip, Handa Bukas!” online press briefing hosted by DepEd that the Pasig LGU had allotted a P1.3 billion to buy tablets for distribution to public school students; laptops for teachers; and support the printing of modules and Internet connectivity.
Sotto said their response to help learners access education despite the pandemic can be described in two words: adaptability and synergy.
When asked by BusinessMirror in a separate interview, Luna, Isabela Mayor Jaime Atayde said they will utilize either general funds or the economic development fund on top of the SEF to support the Basic Education-Learning Continuity Plan (BE-LCP).
The SEF is sourced from real property taxes collected by local governments, in behalf of the national government. Funding from SEF is regulated by the Civil Service Commission, Department of the Interior and Local Government and DepEd.
“We continuously use the funds of our barangay, Sangguniang Kabataan and local government to support our school learners in Luna,” Atayde said, in a mix of English and Filipino, adding that they also provided gadgets to some students.
“Luna town has already launched Educational TV with two channels for elementary and high-school students. In connection to this, we also distributed televisions in barangays for households who do not have television,” Atayde said.
He said 19 Internet towers were also installed but to limit the use, they gave out Internet coupons for people to access the Internet but within a limited time only.
For Mayor Dan Masinsin of Pililla, Rizal, the local government will also use will use their general fund as source to support the BE-LCP.
“Just like other local governments, we continue to distribute the educational resources to the schools in preparation for the opening of classes,” Masinsin said.
Meanwhile, Sarangani Board Member Jess Bascuña, chairman of the Committee on Education, said they will also tap their regular fund base on the priority of the provincial government “once endorsed by the governor.”
Six strategies
The DepEd has reiterated its identified six strategies to fund the BE-LCP as it had to shift its designed 2020 budget away from face-to-face or the traditional learning modality to various modes of distance learning, given the infection risks from Covid-19.
Aside from the SEF, the funding will also come from the following internal and external fund sources:
■ Recalibration or reprogramming of DepEd’s budget through alignment and modification of Programs, Activities and Projects (PAPs);
■ Use of available balance of the school maintenance and other operating expenses (MOOE);
■ Enhanced partnerships with Development Partners and access to Official Development Assistance (ODA);
■ Enhanced Brigada Eskwela and maximized private sectors contributions; and
■ Request to DBM (Department of Budget and Management) and/or Congress for Supplemental Budget.
These strategies can help DepEd and its regional offices and school divisions offices to fund the remaining budget requirements needed for LCP.