|
Thursday, January 27, 2005
Ayala exec to private sector: Fund kids’ education
By Jessica Banzon-Natad
Sun.Star Staff Reporter
THE head of one of the country’s largest conglomerates is urging the private sector to help the government finance the quality education of children, who will be the country’s source of economic strength in the next five to 10 years.
Jaime Augusto Zobel de Ayala, president and chief executive officer of Ayala Corp., however, stressed that the efforts to slow down the country’s fast population growth rate must continue.
During the recently concluded 3rd Global Filipino Networking Convention at the Waterfront Cebu City Hotel and Casino, he said the Philippines can capitalize on its “demographic dividend” or large population of 82 million for its economic upliftment, like what China and India have been doing.
“But we (country) must invest for them (the children) to have quality education. We want to have graduates who are technically skilled to take advantage of the information technology age,” Ayala told some 300 balikbayan-participants of the convention.
He said that today, the Philippines has been reaping the benefits of its large working population with the increase of Filipino workers all over the world and the growing outsourc-ing activities in the country.
“These indicate that we are becoming a global player in the service industry,” Ayala said.
The country’s rapid population growth rate is one of the major issues being addressed by the government. It has proposed policies, such as the two-child policy, to slow down the current 2.36 percent population growth rate.
Ayala is encouraging the private sector to help the government “arrest the slow decay in the quality of education for millions of Filipino children.”
“I believe that by now, it is clear to everyone that our public educational system is not in the best of health and has been steadily losing international competitiveness. Today, the government continues to face increasingly significant fiscal challenges. It is, therefore, constrained from allocating the much-needed resources for the children’s education,” he added.
US Ambassador to the Philippines Francis Ricciar-done earlier urged the government to invest in education to revive the “very high” educational standards, specifically in English, of the country in the past.
“The Philippines’ high educational standards have been deteriorating in the past decades because of disinvestments,” he said.
In a separate interview, Cebu International School superintendent Mark Bretherton said the underin-vestment on education is not unique to the Philippines.
“It is a problem worldwide. Governments would rather spend on arms and other national expenditures than on quality education,” he said.
This is why the private education sector all over the world, including the Philippines, is flourishing.
(January 27, 2005 issue)
Write letter to the editor.Click here.
Join the Sun.Star message board.Click here. |
|
[return to top]
[home]
[network page]
|
LOCAL NEWS
BUSINESS
OPINION
SPORTS
LIFESTYLE
FEATURE
SUPERBALITA
WEEKEND
|
