EDUCATION UPDATES

DepEd saves P95.7 M from Brigada Eskwela
Tony P. Rimando

SAN FERNANDO CITY, Pampanga — The Department of Education may not be an income-generating agency like, say, the Bureau of Customs, but it can undertake projects which can save for the government huge amount of money.

This was shown by the DepEd regional office in Central Luzon which generated a total savings of close to R100 million for its implementation of the 2007 "Brigada Eskwela" in 17 provincial and city schools divisions.

DepEd Region 3 Director Mario Ramirez described "Brigada" as a nationwide joint volunteer action by parents, community members, and teachers in doing minor repair work on public elementary and secondary school building and facilities before the start of a school year to prepare the structures for the opening of classes.

Ramirez said "Brigada," also called National Schools Maintenance Week, involves local government officials, civic group members and other education stakeholders who donate assorted construction materials – such as lumber, sand and gravel, cement, plywood, paints, nails, wires, and GI sheets – for use in the repair of desks, windows, tables, toilets, chairs, pathways, fences and floors.

A consolidated report gathered from various city and provincial schools divisions, Ramirez said, stated that the savings generated from the May 21-26 NSMW in Central Luzon totalled P95,756,013.08 – broken down to P77,799,429.58 in 2,173 elementary schools, and P17,956,583.50 in 457 high schools – which represented the estimated value of donated assorted construction materials.

The approximate cost of labor given by 201,080 volunteer parents and community members is still being determined by participating schools, Ramirez said, through Education Supervisor II Feliciano Lambus, chief of the DepEd regional planning unit.

Lambus said data indicated that the schools division of Nueva Ecija received the biggest estimated cost of donated construction materials with R19,695,297, followed by Bulacan and Zambales with R14,710,122 and R12,463,284.83, respectively.

The other schools divisions and their respective costs of donated materials in both elementary and secondary schools, Lambus said, are Tarlac, R10,870,500; Angeles City, R9.747,372; Olongapo City, R2,647,301; Malolos City, R2,731, 595; Pampanga, R5,159,676.75; Muñoz City, R2,521,362.75; and Bataan, R9,634,826.50.

San Jose del Monte City, R2,477,212.25; Gapan City R1,255,771; Cabanatuan City, R676,791; Balanga City, R618,938; San Fernando City, R855,700; Tarlac City, R186,?75 and Aurora, R53,500.