PRIME benefits 100,000 indigenous peoples, Muslims

MANILA, Philippines - More than 100,000 marginalized students across the country have benefited from the Australian government-funded Philippines Response to Indigenous Peoples and Muslim Education (PRIME) program, the Department of Education (DepEd) said yesterday.

The program, which was launched in 2011, has provided basic education to more than 75,000 IPs and over 31,000 Muslim pupils in nine regions, the DepEd said.

“This is part of our commitment to achieve the Education for All (EFA) 2015 targets and the Millennium Development Goals set by the United Nations. In pursuing this, it is DepEd’s duty to ensure that the most disadvantaged and marginalized are given particular attention,” Education Secretary Armin Luistro said.

“Australia is our biggest partner in education. Through PRIME, we were able to provide inclusive and culture-based education for our indigenous and Muslim learners. We were able to reach far-flung areas and engage different communities,” Luistro said.

The Australian government has allotted Australian $6.7 million for the program that focused on culture-based education.

PRIME was implemented in 725 public elementary schools in nine regions in the country.

“Throughout PRIME, we made sure that our stakeholders’ participation was taken into account and are actively involved in the decision making process, so they would be able to make it more conducive for their different cultures,” Dina Ocampo, DepEd Undersecretary for Programs and Projects, said.

More than 140 schools and 11 community proponents developed indigenized learning materials, she said.

DepEd has developed orthographies in Luzon — Bago, Ibaloi, Kankanaey, Iwak, and Tagbanua; and in Mindanao — Sangir, Bagobo-Tagabawa, Bagobo-Klata, Ata-Manobo, Obo-Manobo, Tagakaolo, Mansaka, Mandaya, Mangguangan, Dibabawon, Matigsalog, Sama, Blaan, and T’bloi.

Ocampo said the program was able to address issues on dropouts, absenteeism, and poor participation among indigenous and Muslim learners.