Education Secretary Sonny Angara announced that the Department of Education (DepEd) and the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) are expanding their joint response to fast-track the recovery of public schools damaged by recent southwest monsoon (habagat) rains.
Under the directive from President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr., the two agencies are pivoting their 2026 Tulong Panghanapbuhay sa Ating Disadvantaged Workers (TUPAD)–Brigada Eskwela convergence into an immediate disaster cleanup mechanism to restore affected classrooms.
Secretary Angara expressed gratitude to DOLE, led by Labor Secretary Francis Tolentino, and the Office of the Executive Secretary (OES) headed by Executive Secretary Ralph Recto for providing vital manpower and operational support for school readiness and emergency cleanups.
“Ang ating pakikipagtulungan sa DOLE sa ilalim ng pamumuno ni Pangulong Bongbong Marcos ay patunay na kapag sama-sama ang mga ahensya ng pamahalaan, mas mabilis nating maihahatid ang tulong sa ating mga kababayan,” Secretary Angara said.
“Ito ang tunay na diwa ng bayanihan—nagbibigay tayo ng pangkabuhayan sa ating mga manggagawa habang tinitiyak na ligtas at handa ang ating mga paaralan,” Angara added.
Initial assessments from the DepEd Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Service (DRRMS) as of August 9 show a total of 2,424 damaged classrooms across affected regions– comprising 403 totally damaged, 505 with major damage, and 1,516 with minor damage.
Regional and Schools Division Offices are currently validating data to determine priority sites for the immediate deployment of emergency cleanup personnel.
The TUPAD-Brigada Eskwela convergence has successfully operationalized the administration’s whole-of-government approach, providing temporary employment to local communities while readying public school facilities for the opening of classes.
Under the initiative, as of July 30, 2026, DOLE has funded the deployment of 168,517 temporary workers across 9,186 public schools nationwide, providing PHP 1.07 billion in financial assistance to support school opening operations.
Angara commended DOLE for its prompt commitment to provide emergency labor assistance to help habagat-affected schools recover quickly, while reaffirming DepEd’s commitment to swift disaster response through continuous inter-agency cooperation.
“Ngayong hinaharap natin ang pinsala ng habagat, muli tayong nagpapasalamat sa DOLE sa kanilang mabilis na pagtugon. Sa tulong ng ating emergency labor augmentation, mas mabilis nating malilinis at maipapaayos ang ating mga silid-aralan upang maiwasan ang anumang abala sa pag-aaral ng ating mga kabataan,” Angara added.
