MANILA, Philippines - Sen. Alan Cayetano has filed a bill granting college scholarships to high school students who belong to the "cream of the crop" in their class.
According to Senate Bill No. 93 or the "Iskolar ng Bayan" Bill, the top 10 high school students in their class will be provided scholarships in the state university or college where they are accepted.
Cayetano said this measure will create increased access to tertiary education to young Filipinos to find better jobs.
"By providing more affordable higher education, the government will provide Filipino Families and the youth with better opportunities for gainful employment that will lift them out of poverty," he said.
The senator also expressed disappointment at the high number of out-of-school youth in the country, which he claims stands at 16 percent of the estimated 39 million young Filipinos, according to the latest Annual Poverty Indicators Survey.
Cayetano also claimed that half of high school students drop out and of those who get to finish high school, only 20 percent enroll in college.
"Poor Filipino families suffer daily from the tremendously high cost of education. Paying for education is now proving to be impossible for the Filipino family and the government must do everything to change that," Cayetano said.