ILOILO CITY – The first madrasah school building or Islamic law school in Western Visayas region will be constructed in Sara town, Iloilo province.

THE design of the school building for Muslim learners in Sara town, Iloilo province. (Iloilo PSB)
The Iloilo provincial government through its Provincial School Board (PSB) will construct a P6.4-million building within the Sara Central Elementary School (SCES).
This school building will be part of the school’s Madrasah Education Program (MEP) that the Department of Education (DepEd) is implementing in areas with a number of Muslims in their communities.
The MEP provides Muslim learners with appropriate and relevant educational opportunities in context of their religious and cultural backgrounds.
The MEP specifically integrates Arabic Language and Islamic Values (ALIVE) into the basic education curriculum.
Iloilo Provincial Administrator Raul Banias and PSB Secretary Maria Freda Sabanal-Fajardo released a check for the construction to SCES Principal Nancy Batobalani, MEP Division Coordinator Liza Balogo, and Poblacion Ilawod Barangay Captain Godfrey Sonza.
Batobalani said Muslim learners will be under the tutelage of Ustadzha Jalilah Abubacar who has won numerous national awards.
The construction is part of the reform program Bulig Eskwela sang Probinsya of the administration of Gov. Arthur “Toto” Defensor Jr.