The Marcos administration should exhaust all means to improve literacy and education in the country, Senator Loren Legarda said on Sunday, September 8.
Legarda issued the call as the Philippines celebrates International Literacy Day.
“Without literacy, there is no progress. Education breaks the cycle of poverty and inequality,” Legarda said.
“We need to ensure that every Filipino has access to quality education—no excuses, no delays,” the senator stressed.
A World Bank study, she said, shows that 90 percent of Filipino children aged 10 struggle to read. Such crisis require the government’s immediate attention.
“Laws are in place, but we need stronger implementation to ensure they truly benefit our students. The future of our nation depends on how well we educate our youth,” Legarda emphasized.
This year’s celebration of Literacy Day highlgihts the critical role of literacy in building just and sustainable societies.
This year’s celebration carries the theme: “Promoting Multilingual Education: Literacy for Mutual Understanding and Peace,” which emphasizes the need for literacy in fostering unity and progress.
Department of Education (DepEd) Secretary Juan Edgardo “Sonny” Angara earlier said that the agency has planned short-term and long-term goals to address the state of Philippine education.
“In the short term, to develop these skills, we are including periods in the everyday curriculum for reading to strengthen the foundations of literacy and numeracy,” Angara assured.
“But in the long term, we’ll have to institute some reforms in how we teach,” he promised.