As the country awaits the enactment of the 2026 national budget, Senator Sherwin Gatchalian gave assurance that the forthcoming General Appropriations Act (GAA) is designed to significantly accelerate the construction of classrooms to address persistent shortages in public schools nationwide.
The senator said the enrolled 2026 budget allocates P85 billion for the construction and repair of classrooms, reflecting a substantial increase aimed at easing congestion and improving learning conditions in the country.
Of the total allocation, P65.9 billion is earmarked for the construction, replacement, and completion of school buildings from kindergarten to senior high school, including facilities for technical and vocational courses.
“We did not only allocate a larger budget for the construction of classrooms, we also ensured that the process would be accelerated through the active participation of various sectors,” said Gatchalian, chairman of the Senate Committee on Finance.
Under the GAA, the Department of Education is authorized to adopt multiple approaches to classroom construction, including partnerships with private entities to speed up delivery.
The Department of Public Works and Highways may also enter into memoranda of agreement with qualified local government units, civil society organizations, non-government groups, and the Armed Forces of the Philippines Corps of Engineers.
Recently, the Senate approved on second reading Senate Bill No. 1482, or the proposed Classroom-building Acceleration Program Act, which seeks to address the country’s classroom backlog.
The bill, sponsored by Senator Paolo Benigno Aquino IV, allows local government units and civil society organizations to directly manage classroom construction projects under national standards and oversight.
For 2026, the Department of Education has been granted a P1.38 trillion budget, with a significant portion directed toward classroom construction and the expansion of the school-based feeding program.
Lawmakers estimated the classroom backlog at 165,000 rooms, a figure that could reach 200,000 within three years without intervention, with the total cost of fully resolving the gap pegged at P540 billion.
