National Scholarship Commission Act

Senate Office of the scorctarp TWENTIETH CONGRESS OF THE ) REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES ) 26 MAR 16 P4:51 First Regular Session SENATE RECEIVED BY S. No. 1979 Introduced by Senator JV Ejercito AN ACT PROVIDING A UNIFIED SYSTEM OF EXTENDING AND PROCESSING A UNIFIED SYSTEM OF SCHOLARSHIP GRANTS, STUDENT LOAN PROGRAMS, SUBSIDIES, BURSARIES AND OTHER FINANCIAL SUPPORT WINDOWS FOR THE FILIPINO YOUTH, THEREBY ESTABLISHING THE NATIONAL SCHOLARSHIP COMMISSION, PROVIDING FUNDS THEREFOR AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES EXPLANATORY NOTE According to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), the global out-of-school population has decreased only 1% after decades of efforts in lessening the global problem.! Due to its stagnant progress, 251 million children and youth remain to be out-of-school worldwide. In the Philippines, however, recent data indicate some improvement in reducing the number of out-of-school children and youth (OSCY). The rate decreased from 5.9% (1.64 million children) in 2017 to 4.1% (1.16 million children) in 2022. Despite this improvement, the Philipppine Statistics Authority (PSA) reported in 2024 that nearly 11 million children and young Filipinos are not attending formal school. 3 1 United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization [UNESCO]. (2024, October 31). 251M children and youth still out of school, despite decades of progress (UNESCO report) [Press release]. Retrieved March 3, 2026, from https://www.unesco.org/en/articles/251m-children-and-youth-still-out-school-despite-decades- progress-unesco-report 2 Albert, J. R., Monterola, S. L., Cabalfin, D. L., & Mahmoud, M. (2025). Out-of-School Children in the Philippines: Post-Pandemic realities the educational Spectrum challenges Extremes. https://doi.org/10.62986/dp2025.34 3 Desiderio, L. (2024, May 14). Nearly 11 million children, youth not in school - PSA. Philstar.com. https://www.philstar.com/headlines/2024/05/15/2355189/nearly-11-million-children-youth- not-school-psa

A key obstacle to this problem is the underinvestment of countries to education financing. In the context of the Philippines, the persistence of poverty is considered a primary driver of educational exclusion. Although programs such as the Alternative Learning System (ALS) and Community-Based Training Programs (CBTP) were recognized as helpful, enhancement of these programs is encouraged.+ Scholarships, educational grants, and financial aid are vital in helping aspiring students access higher education. Thus, this bill calls for the creation of an agency that will supervise a unified system of government education assistance. This measure ensures that free education becomes more accessible, particularly for Out-of-School Children and Youth (OSCY). By establishing a centralized system to manage scholarships, student loans, and subsidies, the bill seeks to remove bureaucratic barriers that discourage OSCY from pursuing education. It also mandates proactive outreach and the development of a national database to identify and support students in need, ensuring that financial assistance is transparent, accessible, and strategically targeted to help break the cycle of poverty among Filipino youth. In light of the foregoing, the immediate passage of this legislation is earnestly sought. JV EJERCITO 4 Dimabayao, Creisha. (2024). Socio-Economic Condition and Aspirations in Life of Out-of-School Youths. The Review of Contemporary Scientific and Academic Studies. 4. 10.55454/rcsas.4.10.2024.004.

Senate Office of the secretary TWENTIETH CONGRESS OF THE ) REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES ) MAR 16 P4:51 First Regular Session ) RECEIVED BY. SENATE S. No. 1979 Introduced by Senator IV Ejercito AN ACT PROVIDING A UNIFIED SYSTEM OF EXTENDING AND PROCESSING SCHOLARSHIP GRANTS, STUDENT LOAN PROGRAMS, SUBSIDIES, BURSARIES AND OTHER FINANCIAL SUPPORT WINDOWS FOR THE FILIPINO YOUTH, THEREBY ESTABLISHING THE NATIONAL SCHOLARSHIP COMMISSION, PROVIDING FUNDS THEREFOR AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES Be it enacted by the Senate and the House of Representatives of the Philippines in Congress assembled:

Section 1. Short Title. - This Act shall be known as the National Scholarship

2 Commission Act.

Sec. 2. Declaration of Policy. - The State shall protect and promote the right of

4 all citizens to quality education at all levels and shall take appropriate steps to make 5 such education accessible to all. The State shall also establish and maintain a system of scholarship grants, student loan programs, subsidies, bursaries, and other incentives which shall be available to deserving students and individuals in both public and private schools, especially to the underprivileged. It is the goal of the State to substantially bring down the number of out of school youth and encourage them to continue seeking formal education, with the goal of expanding their horizons with additional opportunities in the future, thereby fully maximizing their full potential.

Sec. 3. Duties and Functions of the National Scholarship Commission. - The

2 following shall be the duties and functions of the National Scholarship Commission 3 (the "Commission"): a. Generate, safe-keep and update a comprehensive database of out of school children and youth (OSCY) and other qualified individuals nationwide, including pertinent data and/or circumstances of said OSCY; b. Identify and pinpoint the reasons, issues and/or controversies that are keeping children and youth out of schools and formal education, as well as the needs of OSCY; c. Reach out to the OSCY and other qualified individuals and gather information and/or data that could help them get back to formal education; d. Proactively and effectively disseminate information regarding existing regular and/or special scholarships, educational grants and the like to OSCY and qualified individuals; e. Proactively and effectively generate and/or solicit scholarships, educational grants and the like for OSCY and qualified individuals; and, f. Assist OSCY and qualified individuals who opt to avail of scholarships, educational grants and the like and facilitate with the necessary procedures and/or processes.

Sec. 4. Composition of the National Scholarship Commission. - The Commission

21 shall be composed and governed by the following: a. The Secretary of the Department of Education (DepEd), or his/her duly authorized representative, as a co-chairperson of the Commission; b. The Chairperson of the Commission on Higher Education (CHED), or his/her duly authorized representative, as a co-chairperson of the Commission; c. The Secretary of the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA), or his/her duly authorized representative, as a co-chairperson of the Commission; d. The Secretary of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), or his/her duly authorized representative, as member of the Commission;

e. The Secretary of the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), or his/her duly authorized representative, as a member of the Commission; f. The Chairperson of the National Youth Commission (NYC) as a member of the Commission; and g. A representative from the Sangguniang Kabataan (SK), who shall be elected by all SK Provincial Federation Presidents, as a member of the commission.

Sec. 5. Staffing and the National Scholarship Commission's Secretariat - The

9 Commission's staff, secretariat and personnel shall be appointed by the Commission. 10 The Commission shall convene immediately upon the effectivity of this Act to organize 11 and come up with internal rules and procedures necessary for its daily operations and 12 the carrying out of its duties and functions as spelled out in this Act.

Sec. 6. Implementing Rules and Regulations. - The Commission shall likewise

promulgate rules and regulations to implement the provisions of this Act within ninety 15 (90) days from the effectivity of this Act.

Sec. 7. Appropriation. - The funds necessary to carry out the provisions of this

17 Act shall be included In the General Appropriations Act of the year following the enactment of this Act. In the meantime, the initial funding, prior to the inclusion in 19 the regular budget, shall be provided from the existing budgets of the DepEd, CHED 20 and TESDA.

Sec. 8. Repealing Clause. - All laws, orders, issuances rules and regulations or

parts thereof inconsistent with any provisions of this Act are hereby repealed, modified or amended accordingly.

Sec. 9. Separability Clause. - If any portion or provision of this Act Is declared

unconstitutional, the remainder of this Act or any provision not affected thereby shall remain in force and effect.

Sec. 10. Effectivity. - This Act shall take effect after fifteen (15) days following

the completion of its publication either In the Official Gazette or in a newspaper of general circulation in the Philippines. Approved,