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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider Gatchalian pushes to increase DepEd's budget for SPED

Gatchalian pushes to increase DepEd's budget for SPED

Published Nov 16, 2022 12:13 pm

Senator Sherwin Gatchalian has urged the Senate to increase the Department of Education’s (DepEd) capital outlay for Special Education (SPED) for 2023.

Gatchalian, chairman of the Senate Committee on Basic Education, said the agency’s capital outlay budget for SPED should be increased from P96-million to P160-million.

The senator noted that the P96-million would be utilized to convert 16 SPED Centers nationwide to an Inclusive Learning Resource Center (ILRC) for Learners with Disabilities, but the minimum funding requirement for the conversion of these centers ranges from P8-million to P10-million.

“This representation sincerely recommends that we increase the budget of capital outlay from P96 million to P160 million just to convert SPED centers in all regions, and we will have one model ILRC per region,” said Gatchalian during his interpellation of the proposed DepEd budget for 2023.

The lawmaker said he will submit his proposals on potential funding sources to the Senate Committee on Finance.

Gatchalian also pointed out that ensuring funds for SPED is aligned with Republic Act No. 11650 or “Instituting a Policy of Inclusion and Services for Learners with Disabilities in Support of Inclusive Education Act,” which he sponsored during the 18th Congress.

Under the law, the Department of Education (DepEd), in collaboration with local government units (LGUs), is mandated to establish and maintain at least one ILRC in all cities and municipalities.

The law also provides that all existing SPED Centers shall be converted to and renamed ILRCs.

Gatchalian has been raising the call to ensure support for learners with disabilities, especially because they were among the hardest hit by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Data from DepEd, as of March 14, 2022, show that there were 126,598 learners with disabilities enrolled in DepEd schools for School Year (SY) 2021-2022, 65 percent lower than the 360,879 recorded for SY 2019-2020.

Sen. Risa Hontiveros had earlier urged the Senate to realign the DepEd’s confidential and intelligence funds (CIFs) worth P150-million and use a portion of it for SPED and to also boost the country’s Indigenous Peoples’ (IP) education program.

Related Tags

SPED deped Senate Committee on Basic Education Sherwin Gatchalian
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