The Department of Education (DepEd) on Thursday said it has accelerated the delivery of Learning Continuity Spaces (LCS) nationwide.
This is part of the agency’s response to resolve classroom shortages and ensure learning continuity in line with the directives of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.
In a statement, DepEd Secretary Sonny Angara underscored the need for its immediate rollout to strengthen uninterrupted learning, even in disaster-affected areas.
“Kailangang bilisan natin ang pagpapatayo ng mga ligtas na pasilidad upang matiyak ang tuloy-tuloy na pagkatuto ng ating mga mag-aaral, lalo na sa mga lugar na madalas tamaan ng kalamidad (We need to speed up the establishment of safe facilities to ensure the continuous learning of our students, especially in calamity-prone areas),” he said.
To date, 878 prefabricated and disaster-resilient LCS units under the program’s first two phases are currently underway.
Of the total, 34 are already completed and ready for use, while 453 classrooms are under construction and 391 are in the procurement stage.
The program is also expanding to include the procurement of two five-classroom buildings at Romana C. Acharon Elementary School and H.N. Cahilsot Central Elementary School in General Santos City, with completion expected within the month.
A separate budget of PHP226.4 million, meanwhile, has been set aside to build 109 more ready-to-assemble classrooms across seven regions nationwide.
The majority, or 83 out of 109 units, will be built in the Davao Region to support earthquake-affected schools and help communities recover.
Built for rapid deployment, these semi-permanent, modular classrooms can be fully installed within four to eight weeks. (PNA)