State-owned Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) remains at the forefront of implementing relevant and meaningful social responsibility programs through a new flagship CSR initiative — the DBP Resources for Inclusive and Sustainable Education (RISE) initiative.
DBP President and Chief Executive Officer Cecilia C. Borromeo said that this new scholarship program, which targets underprivileged high school graduates across the archipelago, will support the education of more than 2,500 scholars in the next five years. The DBP RISE is financed by a P500-million seed fund.
“As one of government’s financial institutions, DBP has been tasked to do more so that the administration’s poverty alleviation efforts can be felt by more Filipinos,” Borromeo said. “The DBP RISE was conceptualized to directly impact on an area that is broadly acknowledged to be a development driver – education. As a mechanism for providing educational opportunities, the DBP RISE can make a significant difference in the lives of promising youth from low income families. The DBP RISE gives underprivileged Filipino youth a shot at a brighter future.”
Borromeo said that with the DBP RISE, the bank will support students enrolled in courses such as accountancy, engineering, education, and information technology adding that “DBP will shoulder tuition fees, board and lodging expenses, living allowance, cost of apprenticeship, residency training, and expenses during review for Board exams.”
DBP has tapped 14 partner-schools for this initiative, comprised of eight state universities and colleges and six private educational institutions. These schools are the University of the Philippines Los Baños, Polytechnic University of the Philippines, Bulacan State University, Emilio Aguinaldo College – Cavite, Mindanao State University, University of Science and Technology of Southern Philippines, Misamis University, Our Lady of Triumph Institute of Technology, Palawan State University, Philippine Normal University, University of Cebu, Lyceum of the Philippines University – Cavite, West Bay College, and West Visayas State University.
For the first year of implementation, covering school year 2018-2019, the DBP RISE is already supporting more than 350 scholars from indigent families.
Borromeo added that the DBP RISE is the offshoot of another DBP flagship CSR initiative — the DBP Endowment for Education Program (DEEP) — which is nearing completion after a decade of empowering intelligent but underprivileged youth by giving them access to higher education.
Just like the DBP RISE, DEEP is a scholarship program for brilliant students belonging to families with annual incomes that do not exceed P150,000. Most scholars are children of farmers, laborers, drivers, teachers, housewives, electricians, mechanics, vendors, retired policemen, and soldiers. DEEP scholars receive the whole range of support for student requirements, including books, cost of living, and allowances.
Borromeo reported that the DEEP scholarship program has already produced more than 3,200 graduates of a diverse number of college courses including maritime, agriculture, forestry, education, nursing, and hotel and restaurant management. DEEP has also produced graduates of short-term technical-vocational courses such as information technology, computer programming, graphics animation, and automotive/welding.
More than 85% of DEEP’s graduates are already gainfully employed. Out of that number, 47% hail from Mindanao, 34% are from Luzon, while the remaining 19% came from the Visayas.
Borromeo said that with the DBP RISE, the bank will provide continuing access to education for the socio-economic upliftment of the best and brightest but disadvantaged Filipino youths and their families. The program will also help ensure an adequate supply of qualified professionals and skilled workers for the country’s requirements, as well as respond to the growing demand for Filipino professionals in the global markets.
For more information about this topic, please contact Vice President Zandro Carlos P. Sison / Head, Corporate Affairs Department at telephone numbers 893-6743 and 818-9511 local 3709, or email info@dbp.ph.
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