MANILA, Philippines, May 27 (NNN-PNA) – The Asian Development Bank (ADB), approved a 300-million-U.S. dollar loan, to support the Philippine government’s efforts, to achieve inclusive growth by improving access to high-quality secondary education, that responds to labour market needs, the Manila-based bank said today (Monday).
The bank said, the secondary education support programme will benefit about 10.6 million students nationwide, currently enrolled in high school, and an additional two million grade seven entrants yearly, from 2019 to 2023.
Moreover, it said, the programme will help the country boost job opportunities and subsequently reduce poverty. The Philippine government has set a target of lowering poverty to 14 percent by 2022 from the current 21 percent.
“Sustaining Philippines’ strong growth momentum will require a workforce equipped with the appropriate set of advanced skills and knowledge, to allow them to keep in step with rapid technological changes in global economy,” ADB Senior Education Specialist for Southeast Asia, Lynnette Perez, said.
She added, “Continued investments in high-quality education are crucial to attaining the government’s vision of lowering unemployment and poverty rates.”
ADB said, nearly 294,000 public secondary education teachers, and additional teachers, to be hired until 2023, stand to benefit from improved teaching practices, which will lead to better learning outcome.– NNN-PNA
