Saturday, June 07, 2008 GMA allocates P1B for scholarships; budget taken from E-vat on fuel
PRESIDENT Arroyo has allocated P1 billion for education, said Commission on Higher Education (Ched) commissioner Nona Ricafort.
This came after the Ched noticed a decrease of enrolment in colleges across the country.
“We have observed that enrolment decreased because people don’t have money to buy food,” said Ricafort in yesterday’s consultative conference with presidents and school heads of private and public schools of higher education institutions in Region 7.
The budget will be used for scholarships and improvement of various college and university programs.
From the P1 billion, P500 million will be allocated for the Student Assistance For Education (SAFE) Scholarship program, said Ricafort.
Third year and fourth year college students may avail themselves of the scholarships in order to assure that they will graduate from their respective courses.
Each beneficiary will enjoy P60,000 worth of scholarship.
However, their Higher Education Institution (HEI) must recommend scholarship applicants. The HEIs have to identify deserving students for the program.
Students which are located in calamity stricken areas and that are not financially well-off may qualify for the scholarship.
Ricafort also added that the student would not require a guarantor but are asked to sign a memorandum of agreement that states that they would pay for their scholarship within two to five years after graduating.
Some P300 million will be used for the Bachelor of Science in Agriculture and Bachelor of Science in Fisheries courses.
The remaining P200 million will be given to Mathematics and Sciences.
The President’s P1 billion budget is taken from the expanded value added tax collections from fuel, said Ricafort.
Meanwhile, Ricafort has also asked private institutions to refrain from increasing their tuition fees.
Should the private institutions increase in tuition fees, 70 percent of the increase must go to the wages of faculty, 20 percent to school upgrading and 10 percent to the return of investment. (EPB)
