About two million kindergarten to Grade 3 pupils will receive free school bags and school supplies under the Marcos administration's "Bagong Bag para sa Mag-aaral: Presidential Assistance to Primary-Grade Learners" program.
Executive Secretary Ralph Recto said the nationwide initiative, which began on June 9, aims to provide essential school supplies to underprivileged students throughout the school year.
Recto said the program is in line with President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.'s directive to promote quality education by ensuring that children begin the school year prepared and ready for learning. He added that the President has made it a priority to help ease the financial burden of back-to-school expenses on Filipino families.
"We know that for many families, preparing for the school year means making sacrifices to buy school supplies and other needs. By helping hardworking parents get their children ready for class, we are giving our kids a better start," Recto said in a statement on Sunday.
The ceremonial launch at Taytay Elementary School marked the initial distribution of school bags and learning kits to 4,000 learners from Department of Education (DepEd)-identified public schools as part of the program's phased nationwide rollout.
Each beneficiary received a pre-packed school bag containing notebooks, pencils, crayons, rulers, erasers, sharpeners and other essential learning materials.
Recto said the program will be funded through the Socio-Civic Projects Fund of the Office of the Executive Secretary, in coordination with the DepEd, to ensure the timely and efficient delivery of assistance to beneficiaries nationwide.