Government rolls out free bag program for students

CEBU, Philippines — The national government has officially launched the “Bagong Bag para sa Mag-aaral: Presidential Assistance to Primary-Grade Learners” program, which aims to provide essential school supplies to two million kindergarten to Grade 3 students across the country throughout the school year.

The program is in line with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s directive to ensure that children begin the school year prepared and ready while easing the financial burden of back-to-school expenses on Filipino families.

“We know that for many families, preparing for the school year means making sacrifices to buy school supplies and other needs. By helping the hardworking parents get their children ready for class, we are giving our kids a better start,” Executive Secretary Ralph Recto said in a statement.

Recto added that the initiative goes beyond providing school materials, emphasizing the administration’s commitment to ensuring that no Filipino child is left behind due to a lack of basic learning necessities.

Each beneficiary during the launch was given a pre-packed school bag containing notebooks, pencils, crayons, rulers, erasers, sharpeners, and other essential learning materials.

According to Recto, investing in early-grade learners remains a priority of the Marcos administration, noting that foundational education is crucial in developing literacy, numeracy, classroom readiness, and long-term learning outcomes.

The program is being implemented through the Socio-Civic Projects Fund of the Office of the Executive Secretary in coordination with the Department of Education (DepEd) to ensure the timely, efficient, and targeted distribution of assistance to identified beneficiaries nationwide.

Government officials said the initiative also highlights the continuing collaboration between the Office of the Executive Secretary and DepEd in strengthening program implementation, from identifying beneficiaries to carrying out on-the-ground distribution, to make sure that assistance reaches intended learners across the country.