Nationwide voucher program to benefit over 290,000 students

The Department of Education (DepEd) said on Wednesday that over 292,000 Kindergarten and elementary students will benefit from government tuition assistance after Congress ratified the Basic Education Voucher Assistance Act. "This legislation provides a pragmatic solution to public school constraints while giving families more equitable access to quality schooling," Education Secretary Juan Edgardo “Sonny” M. Angara said in a news release. "By expanding the voucher framework, we are building more sustainable partnerships with private educational institutions, which have always been integral to our national strategy for human capital development," he added. Under the law, qualified Kindergarten to Grade 12 students from overcrowded public schools or areas lacking nearby public facilities can enroll in participating private schools through voucher subsidies. The agency proposed a P4.34-billion budget for 2,632 participating schools for the initial implementation of the expanded voucher program in School Year 2027-2028. Of the proposed budget, P559 million will be allocated to 41,717 Kindergarten students, while Grades 1 through 6 will each cover 41,769 learners, with P559.69 million allocated per grade level. "President Bongbong Marcos has made it a priority to ease the burden of school expenses on Filipino families. Assistance should reach the families who need it most," Mr. Angara said. "These subsidies are meant to keep children in school." Apart from students, P427.8 million for 17,825 eligible private school teachers nationwide is earmarked for the Teachers’ Salary Subsidy (TSS). This will raise the annual TSS from P18,000 to P24,000. The measure requires DepEd to establish a public dashboard identifying participating schools’ locations, available slots, current tuition fees, and required top-up payments not covered by the voucher. A Nationwide School Congestion Mapping and Strategic Allocation Framework will also ensure that voucher allocations complement ongoing classroom construction efforts. The creation of the Bureau of Private Education within DepEd, as mandated by the law, will oversee and supervise the implementation of government assistance programs for private basic education institutions. The new measure comes as public schools nationwide continue to grapple with congested classrooms. Data from the Second Congressional Commission on Education (EDCOM 2) showed that 1,889 public schools nationwide operate on double or triple shifts to accommodate all learners. Meanwhile, classroom backlog stood at 147,347 as of September 2025.