Out-of-school youth

By: Sophia Melanie Castillo

Chairman of the Senate Committee on Youth, Sonny Angara expressed his concern on the situation of out-of-school youth (OSY) as the numbers are growing due to the impact of COVID-19 in the education system of the country.

Angara noted that the increase in the number of OSY is a serious issue that could lead to bigger problems if it continues to be unchecked.

Based on the data from the Department of Education, almost 4 million students were not able to enroll for the current academic year.

As of August 2020, DepEd reported that 23 million students have enrolled in both public and private schools, a big reduction from the previous 27.7 million enrollees in 2019. They mentioned that half of those who did not enroll were from private schools.

Philippine Statistics Authority data indicated that the most common reasons among OSYs for not attending school were family matters, lack of personal interest, and high cost and finances of education.

“The data is alarming and there is a real danger that we’ll end up with even more OSYs now because of the impact of the pandemic on family incomes and the challenges posed by blended learning on both students and their parents alike,” Angara said.

The senator is currently pushing for the establishment of a Magna Carta of the OSYs as proposed in his Senate Bill 1090.

The mentioned bill shall help to strengthen the State’s mandate of a Magna Carta to OSYs to seek out various opportunities that could assist them.

Once passed into a law, OSYs can acquire free mandatory technical/vocational training and education through the Technical Education Skills Development Authority (TESDA). OSYs are also included in the government scholarship program under the Universal Access to Quality Tertiary Education also known as the Free College Law.

Out-of-school youths will also qualify under the Unified Student Financial Assistance System for Tertiary Education (UNIfast) handled by the Commission on Higher Education (CHED)

Angara also said the immediate passage of the measure into law would also benefit OSYs who are victims of abuse, illegal recruitment, prostitution, trafficking, armed conflict, juvenile delinquents, and other persons in similar situations.

“As our country moves towards the next industrial revolution, it is imperative that we leave no one — especially those with the most potential — behind,” the lawmaker stressed.