This is a Press Release from the Office of the Secretary of Department of Education.
Private sector investment in the public school
system has reached P5.8 billion in October 2012, up from P3.4 billion in 2011.
Education Secretary Br. Armin A. Luistro FSC said
the bulk of donation is in the form of school buildings amounting to P1.7
billion which translates to 3,184 classrooms. “We are indebted to our private
sector partners who continue to invest in education knowing fully well its
power to transform the lives of many Filipinos,” he added.
DepEd fetes its education partners through simple
recognition rites for the private sector, non-government organizations and
individuals at the Bulwagan ng Karunungan, DepEd Central Office today, October
25.
Under DepEd’s Adopt-A-School program, private
corporations and individual donors are invited to donate to public schools to
bridge education resource gaps. In exchange, donors can avail of tax rebate
from the government.
“Based on our experience, not all who donate
avail of tax incentives. This proves that their bigger motivation is to give
back to society,” Luistro observes.
The Adopt-A-School secretariat of DepEd continues
to receive increasing proposition to donate from the private sector.
Some of the support
provided by the private sector to public schools are classrooms, furniture, infrastructure
including toilets, handwashing facilities, school stage, fence and drainage
system, feeding program, computers and technology support, school supplies,
training and development, health and nutrition, direct assistance to students
and teachers, reading program, and
DepEd-GASTPE scholarship grants.
"We believe that
donors continue to give to DepEd because they are confident that their donation
will be put to good use,” said Luistro.
