COTABATO CITY—Officials in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) opened classroom facilities in three “madaris” (elementary schools), which they said will benefit more students in Cotabato province.
Aida Silongan, a Member of the Parliament (MP) from the Office of the Bangsamoro Transitional Authority, turned on March 7 three one-level classroom units as infrastructure components of the Madaris Public School Program of BARMM.
The BARMM Ministry of Basic, Higher, and Technical Education (MBHTE) executives accepted the newly constructed school buildings on behalf of the agency’s Madaris Public School Program.
Silongan said each of the school buildings has an aggregate floor area of 128 square meters and will benefit students in Madrasa Mentok in Barangay Damatulan, Midsayap Cluster of the BARMM special geographic area, as well as the Mahad Darul Ahlil Ijtima, and the Madrasatol Hissatol Jareed—both in Barangay Pedtad, Kabacan Cluster.
The P6.5-million budget allocated for the construction of the three education facilities has been provided through the Transitional Development Impact Fund (TDIF) of the MP.
The national government, in collaborative programs with the administrations of the autonomous region, has recognized the potentials of the Madaris Public School System.
Article 14 Section 2(1) of the 1987 Philippine Constitution provides that: “The State shall establish, maintain, and support a complete, adequate, and integrated system of education relevant to the needs of the people and society.”
“The initiative underscores the commitment to providing quality education and enhancing access to learning facilities, especially in underserved areas,” said Silongan, the concurrent BARMM Minister of Science and Technology, in a recent Facebook post.
Silongan, who is a civil engineer by profession, noted that the turnover ceremony of the classrooms, celebrated not just the completion of the project, but also highlighted the shared determination of the communities to ensure that every child in BARMM has access to quality education.
The Bangsamoro Education Code defines madaris (plural form of madrasa, which means ‘school’ in Arabic) as community-based educational institutions whereby the medium of instruction is the Arabic language on Islamic studies, values and Arabic literacy.
Section 54 of the Bangsamoro Education Code stipulates that “the Bangsamoro Government shall provide two parallel formal systems in delivering quality basic education—the ‘Public School System’ and the ‘Public Madrasa System.’”