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Bacolod City, Philippines Friday, November 30, 2012
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Private sector campaign
for classrooms launched
BY
CARLA GOMEZ

Negros Occidental Gov. Alfredo Marañon Jr. welcomed the launching in Bacolod City yesterday of a local campaign to boost a nationwide private sector effort to build 10,000 classrooms.

The governor said he will ask the organizers of the project to use the money raised in Negros Occidental to build classrooms in the province, which is also suffering from a shortage, like the rest of the country.

School officials reported at a Sangguniang Panlalawigan Committee on Education hearing Wednesday that Negros Occidental public schools lack 1,137 classrooms.

The report only covers seven of nine school districts of the province.

The school officials said 731 classrooms are needed for kindergarten, 187 classrooms for high schools and 219 for elementary.

The University of St. La Salle and the Ayala Business Club–Bacolod launched the local campaign to boost support for TEN Moves, the social mobilization campaign that aims to build 10,000 classrooms nationwide, at the USLS campus yesterday morning.

The main strategy of TEN Moves is to get two million people to donate P10 a day for 10 months in order to build the 10,000 classrooms, Mario Deriquito, Ayala Foundation senior director, said.

The classroom shortage in the country is about 66,800 but, according to the DepEd, they have resources for 56,000, so they are asking us to raise money for the remaining 10,000, Deriquito said.

USLS, though its Political Science Society and the Office of Student Affairs, has pledged to raise the needed resources to build one classroom, the location of which will be identified, based on their own community extension program, and in consultation with the Department of Education, he said.

Ayala Business Club-Bacolod will also hand over an initial pledge of P50,000 on top of ongoing employee donations, he added.

The ABC will also promote TEN Moves among its clients, business partners and associates in Negros, he said.

The construction of one classroom is pegged at an average of P600,000, he said.

Marañon said the launch of the local TEN Moves campaign in Negros Occidental is an opportunity for both public and private institutions to engage in new partnerships to make their move for children.

“The lack of classrooms is one of our country's biggest problems, but through TEN Moves, we have an opportunity to be part of the solution,” he said.

“We hope the example of the University of St. La Salle and the Ayala Business Club will lead more institutions to work together to build more classrooms for Filipino children everywhere,” he added.

The governor also thanked individuals and groups who have committed to help the provincial government in building six classrooms at the Negros Occidental High School.

Geoffrey Bob Bergante, vice chancellor for Mission and Development of the USLS, said the campaign is an opportunity for the school to give the gift of education to more students.

Deriquito said addressing the classroom backlog takes a concerted effort from government, nongovernment organizations, business, the academe and the youth.

“We need to harness the energy and resources of each sector in order to provide adequate learning facilities for all Filipino children everywhere,” he added.

To learn more about TEN Moves, one can go to www.tenmoves.org , he said.

The campaign began in October last year and has since been launched in various parts of the country, Deriquito said, pointing out that they have so far raised money for 3,000 classrooms.

Marañon said the classroom shortage that is a nationwide problem is the primary obligation of DepEd whose functions have not been devolved to local government units.

But everybody can work together to help meet the shortage, he added.

Board Member Melvin Ibañez pointed out that the provincial government has also gone into counterparting to help local government units to build classrooms.*CPG

 

 

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