SEN. Bam Aquino said the P65-billion fund for the construction of new classrooms in the 2026 national budget would create over 100,000 jobs and reduce the enormous 165,000 classroom backlog.
During a dialogue with Iloilo officials, the senator on Monday said the construction of a classroom requires at least four to six workers and would take around three to four months to finish.
“Based on these estimates, if our target this year is to construct 25,000 classrooms from the P65 billion fund, it will create more than 100,000,” Aquino said in Filipino.
The chairman of the Senate Committee on Basic Education said the project would benefit construction workers.
Once local government units (LGUs) enter into a memorandum of agreement with the Department of Education (DepEd), they can access the budget to build classrooms, he said.
The classroom construction program is also expected to stimulate local economies and benefit small businesses, the senator said.
Under the 2026 P6.793 trillion national budget, the DepEd was given flexibility when it comes to the modalities for classroom construction, including partnerships with local government units, civil society organizations, and non-governmental organizations with proven track records.
Meanwhile, the Senate approved Aquino’s Classroom-Building Acceleration Program (CAP) Act or Senate Bill 1482 on third and final reading via a 22-0 vote with no negative votes and no abstention.
Under the bill, LGUs and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) with a proven track record may build classrooms within their jurisdictions, in compliance with the Department of Education’s standards and guidelines.
The bill also prioritizes streamlining the classroom building process and includes safeguards against corruption by instituting a price ceiling on classroom construction.
Aquino said the classroom construction initiative “responds directly to Filipinos’ most pressing concern — workers’ wages and salaries — as reflected in the Tugon ng Masa fourth quarter 2025 survey conducted by OCTA Research.”
The survey found that 45 percent of respondents identified improving or increasing wages and salaries as their top priority, underscoring the significance of programs that generate jobs and provide stable income for Filipino workers.
