New bill pushes creation of national education coordinating council

A measure seeking to centralize and streamline the governance of the country’s education system has been filed in the House of Representatives, proposing the creation of a National Coordinating Council for Education (NCCE) under the Office of the President.

House Bill No. 9006, or the “National Coordinating Council for Education Act,” aims to establish a permanent inter-agency body tasked to harmonize policies, coordinate reforms, and monitor implementation across key education agencies, including the Department of Education (DepEd), the Commission on Higher Education (CHED), and the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA).

“It is both critical and long overdue for DepEd, CHED, and TESDA to operate as a single, coherent system. Fragmentation must give way to convergence—through aligned mandates, shared priorities, coordinated funding, and unified implementation—to ensure equitable access to quality education for all Filipinos,” says EDCOM 2 co-chairperson Rep. Roman T. Romulo. 

EDCOM II has earlier pointed out that despite multiple reforms, long-standing problems such as skills mismatch, uneven access, and weak coordination between education agencies persist.

Under the bill, the NCCE will be chaired by the President of the Philippines, and is envisioned to serve as the central platform for aligning education and workforce development priorities across government.

It will also be mandated to formulate a national education and workforce development plan, track major reform initiatives, oversee human resource planning for the education sector, and develop an integrated data system to monitor learner outcomes and transitions from school to employment.

Romulo said the proposal responds to long-standing issues flagged by EDCOM II, which found that the current “trifocalized” structure of education governance has resulted in fragmented policies, duplication of programs, and gaps in accountability.

The bill also seeks to address systemic concerns raised in recent EDCOM II reports, which highlighted inefficiencies in the education system and the need for stronger coordination to improve learning outcomes and employment readiness among Filipino graduates.

If enacted, the NCCE will include heads of key government agencies such as DepEd, CHED, TESDA, the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), the Department of Budget and Management (DBM), and other related offices involved in human capital development.

The measure is part of broader education reform initiatives being pursued in Congress following EDCOM II’s nationwide review of the Philippine education system, which has consistently called for stronger integration of policy planning, implementation, and monitoring across agencies.

The bill has been referred to the appropriate House committee for deliberation.