Education Secretary Sonny Angara presented the Department of Education’s (DepEd) proposed ₱975.96-billion budget for Fiscal Year 2027 before the House Committee on Appropriations on Monday, while seeking an additional ₱145.19 billion to fund critical programs not included in the proposed National Expenditure Program (NEP).
While the proposed NEP budget safeguards DepEd’s core operations, Angara said additional funding is needed to sustain efforts in learning recovery, personnel hiring, school infrastructure, and safety. He thanked President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. and Congress for the previous year’s historic ₱1.015-trillion allocation, which enabled DepEd to pursue reforms aimed at improving learning outcomes and strengthening basic education support.
Under the proposed 2027 allocation, Personnel Services will increase by 8.64% to ₱766.74 billion for salaries and career progression, while Maintenance and Other Operating Expenses will decline by 15.94% to ₱174.32 billion and Capital Outlay will drop by 67.49% to ₱32.34 billion. Another ₱2.56 billion will be distributed among six attached agencies.
Among the key allocations are ₱12.09 billion to promote more than 135,000 teachers and school heads under the Expanded Career Progression system, ₱17.31 billion to construct more than 4,900 classrooms, ₱7.33 billion for 11,100 classroom repairs, ₱6.4 billion for textbooks and instructional materials, ₱10.81 billion for learning recovery under the PLUS-D program, and ₱2.63 billion for Inclusive Education programs.
For learner welfare, DepEd has earmarked ₱11.43 billion for the School-Based Feeding Program covering 3.69 million learners, while ₱38.12 billion will support 2.32 million private education voucher and subsidy grantees. Another ₱801.5 million will fund the hiring of 1,800 School Counselor Associates and 221 Schools Division Office counselors.
Angara said several critical programs remain unfunded under the 2027 NEP, prompting DepEd to request an additional ₱145.19 billion, plus ₱1.74 billion for its attached agencies. Among the priorities is the Academic Recovery and Accessible Learning (ARAL) Program, which received no allocation despite the number of struggling readers falling from 6.7 million to 2.2 million and grade-level reading-ready learners increasing from 3.3 million to 5.8 million during School Year 2025–2026.
DepEd is seeking ₱15.98 billion to continue ARAL, including funding for teaching overload honoraria, tutor training and compensation, learning resources, the ARAL Summer Program, remediation consultations, and program management, plus ₱50 million for Bayang Bumabasa. The department is also requesting ₱49.16 billion to hire 14,274 teachers and around 59,000 non-teaching personnel and provide benefits, training, laptops, and other support.
Another ₱37.75 billion is being requested for school construction, repairs, rehabilitation, learning materials, and disaster preparedness, including ₱8.68 billion for school safety and security—₱5.05 billion for security guards, ₱2.31 billion for metal detectors and walkthrough scanners, and ₱1.5 billion for perimeter fences. DepEd is also seeking ₱40.33 billion for feeding, learner assistance, health and mental health services, guidance, and sports, along with ₱983.8 million to support learners with special needs, Madrasah students, Indigenous Peoples learners, and children in hard-to-reach communities.
