DepEd's ARAL Learning Recovery Program Faces Zero Funding for 2027

Education Secretary Juan Edgardo “Sonny” M. Angara said on Monday that the agency’s learning recovery program has received zero funding in the 2027 National Expenditure Program (NEP), raising concerns about the continuity of the learning intervention initiative. “Well, they didn’t give us a line item but hopefully, in the course of the budget proceedings, it will be added,” he told reporters in an interview. “For the last three NEPs, it doesn’t have a budget actually but this year, it does after the GAA (General Appropriations Act).” “With or without an item, we have to fund it actually,” he added. In the Department of Education’s (DepEd) ‘wishlist’, the agency requested P15.98 billion in funding to implement the Academic Recovery and Accessible Learning (ARAL) program next year. Of the proposed budget, P1.09 billion will cover honoraria for teaching overload, P1.75 billion for tutor training, and P1.18 billion for external tutors’ compensation. The agency assigned P4.61 billion and P1.25 billion for resources and summer program, respectively. Other allocations include P6 billion for learning recovery and remediation consultations and P94.39 million for program management. “There’s a zero allotment for this under the 2027 budget unlike this year, where there is an allotment of around P9 billion,” Mr. Angara said during the House Appropriations Committee budget hearing. “Hopefully, our requests will be granted.” The Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT) Philippines expressed disappointment in the lack of funding for the remedial program. “It’s disappointing on the part of the teacher because President Marcos himself said in his budget message that his priority is the Aral Recovery Program as a solution to our crisis in education,” ACT Philippines Chairperson Ruby Bernardo told reporters in Filipino. “However, DepEd still needs to push to get the P15.9 billion in their wish list,” she added. The group also called for hiring more ARAL external tutors to lessen the burden on teachers. “If it stays with our teachers, it will have a big effect on the ARAL Program. If there’s no fund, there’s no way to hire external tutors,” Ms. Bernardo said. “We’re with the DepEd in their push for a budget for the ARAL program." The ARAL program helped reduce struggling readers from 6.7 million to 2.2 million and grade-level reading readiness from 3.3 million to 5.8 million in School Year (SY) 2025-2026, according to the Department of Education (DepEd). The agency earmarked P973.40 billion in the 2027 NEP, about 4% down from the P1.015 trillion approved budget under the 2026 General Appropriations Act (GAA). — Almira Louise S. Martinez