PSA says around 18.6 percent of Filipino children were not attending school in 2022.
Reasons included finishing schooling or finished post-secondary or college, employment, lack of personal interest, marriage, and high cost of education or financial problem .
Of the regions, CALABARZON had the highest proportion of children not attending school due to employment at 28.3 percent.
Meanwhile, four out of five children (81.4 percent) aged 5 to 24 years were enrolled or attending school.
PSA: Nearly 20% of Filipino children not in school
Sep 25, 2023 06:34 AM
At a glance
Almost a fifth of Filipino children were not enrolled in school or regularly attending classes, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) reported.
Based on the PSA’s Annual Poverty Indicators Survey for the school year 2022 to 2023, it was found that 18.6 percent of children aged five to 24 years were not enrolled in school.
The primary reasons for their non-attendance were as follows: completion of schooling or post-secondary/college education (21.1 percent), employment (19.7 percent), lack of personal interest (12.6 percent), marriage (10.7 percent), and financial constraints or high education costs (9.9 percent).
Among the regions, CALABARZON had the highest percentage of children not attending school due to employment, standing at 28.3 percent.
On the other hand, the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) had the highest proportions of children not attending school due to financial concerns (23.2 percent) and family matters (16.2 percent).
The MIMAROPA Region had a higher prevalence of illness and disability, accounting for 7.2 percent of children not attending school, while the Cagayan Valley region had the highest percentage of children not attending school due to marriage, at 18.7 percent.
Additionally, the Cordillera Administrative Region recorded the highest proportions of children not attending school because they had completed their education (28.8 percent) or lacked personal interest (24.1 percent).
The PSA further said there were notable gender differences in the reasons for non-attendance.
More males were not attending school due to employment (25.9 percent) and lack of personal interest (17.9 percent).
On the other hand, more females were not attending school because they had already completed their education (28.9 percent) or due to marriage (17 percent).
Despite these figures, the majority of children aged five to 24 years were enrolled or attending school, accounting for 81.4 percent of the population.
Among the regions, MIMAROPA had the highest proportion of school attendance at 85.1 percent, followed by Eastern Visayas at 84.8 percent, and Bicol Region at 84.4 percent.
Lastly, Central Luzon had the lowest proportion of school attendance at 79.5 percent, followed by BARMM at 78.1 percent, and Zamboanga Peninsula at 76.7 percent.