THE Mandaue City Government is eyeing to provide free school supplies to all students in 49 public schools starting in the next school year. This program, set to be funded through the City’s Special Education Fund (SEF), was announced by City Treasurer Regal Oliva during the forum “Storya Ta! A Move to Good Governance and Transparency” on Thursday, Sept. 19, 2024.
The proposed SEF for 2025 is P700 million, according to Oliva, a lawyer. A total of P80 million from this fund will be allocated specifically for the distribution of free school supplies to all elementary and high school students enrolled in public schools across the city. Aside from the school supplies initiative, Oliva said P90 million from SEF will be allocated for the construction of new classrooms, P50 million installation of solar panels, P35 million for electricity needs, and P70 million for speech laboratories.
Mandaue City has 27 public elementary schools and 22 public high schools. The Mandaue City College will also get a chunk from the SEF, with P60 million set aside for the tertiary education institution. Proposed 2025 budget Oliva said the City’s proposed P700 million for SEF is included in the proposed P4.
5 billion budget for 2025. The proposed annual budget is an increase from this year’s budget of P4 billion. If approved by the City Council, the 2025 budget will also go to infrastructure projects and essential social services, including health.
Oliva said the City Government is not too focused on infrastructure projects. “We have not neglected social services, health, and education. Education is a very important aspect in Mandaue City,” she said in Cebuano.
However, Oliva said the City cannot wait for the Department of Education (DepEd) to address every need of students and teachers, particularly when it comes to the construction of classrooms. To address the pressing need for more classrooms, the City Government, through the SEF, is prepared to step in and construct additional facilities. Oliva did not specify which areas in Mandaue City would see the construction of additional classrooms.
She added that DepEd has strict standards for classroom size but that the city will make use of every available space to accommodate the growing number of students. Oliva said that Mandaue City has the second-highest population density in 17 highly urbanized cities outside the National Capital Region and limited land area in the Philippines, which makes land highly valuable. As of the 2020 Census, Mandaue City had a population of 364,116 and a land area of 25.
18 square kilometers. The city has a population density of 14,461 inhabitants per square kilometer, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority. The city treasurer stressed the importance of utilizing every possible area for classroom construction to address the city’s educational needs.
“We will not wait for the National Government to fund these projects. The beauty of Mandaue City is that we have strong locally sourced income, and we can fund these projects ourselves,” Oliva said. City Budget Officer Giovanni Tianero also spoke at the forum, providing insights into the city’s proposed P4.
5 billion annual budget. He said that P1.3 billion of the P4.
5 billion is from the National Tax Allotment and that they plan to submit the budget proposal to the City Council by the end of September, with final approval anticipated in October. Tianero clarified that the proposed increase in the city’s budget for 2025 is a strategic move to support both infrastructure and social services, with education taking a central role. / CAV.
