Calabarzon tops national classroom shortage, says DepEd

CALABARZON, or Region IV-A, is reported to have the largest classroom deficit in the country with approximately 31,002 units according to the Department of Education (DepEd). DepEd Undersecretary for Strategic Management Ronald Mendoza stated that the shortage has expanded over the years, primarily due to population growth. The National Capital Region (NCR) follows with 24,847 classrooms needed, while the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) ranks third at 13,237. Within Calabarzon, Cavite faces the highest shortfall at 8,832 classrooms, followed by Rizal with 8,516 and Laguna with 7,589. Luzon accounts for 54 percent of the national classroom shortage, which currently totals 165,443 units. Other regions with significant classroom deficits include Region 3 (13,119), Region 7 (10,857), Region 10 (10,333), Region 11 (8,532), Region 12 (8,281), Region 5 (7,415), and Region 9 (6,653). “Under the public-private modality for classroom construction, we have a first wave of at least 15,000 PPP classrooms costing roughly P60 billion, followed by waves of 40,000 and 50,000 PPP-built classrooms,” Mendoza said. DepEd plans to strategically construct 12,000 classrooms, accept 4,500 through voluntary donations, secure 3,000 through negotiated procurements, provide 2,500 via voucher programs, and lease 1,500 classrooms.