Senator Bam Aquino Proposes CAP Act to Address Classroom Shortage in Public Schools

Senator Bam Aquino has put forward the Classroom-Building Acceleration Program (CAP) Act, or Senate Bill 121, aiming to resolve the persistent shortage of classrooms in public schools across the Philippines. The proposed legislation seeks to allow local government units (LGUs) and non-government organizations (NGOs) to directly undertake classroom construction projects, backed by assistance from the national government.

According to Aquino, this approach would expedite the building process and reduce costs compared to projects routed through the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH). He emphasized that this method would also enhance the efficiency and transparency of fund utilization.

"Allowing LGUs and NGOs to build classrooms independently accelerates progress and ensures better management of allocated resources," Aquino stated. Additionally, he proposed reallocating unused flood control funds toward education to support the initiative.

The Department of Education (DepEd) has reported a shortage of approximately 165,000 classrooms nationwide, with Central Visayas alone facing a deficit of 12,574 classrooms. This legislative effort aims to address these gaps and improve learning environments for students throughout the country.