SEN. Sherwin Gatchalian yesterday said the 2024 General Appropriations Act (GAA) will address potential funding deficiencies in free higher education in state universities and colleges (SUCs) as it carries a special provision to pay for projected budget shortages.
In a statement, Gatchalian, who is the chairperson of the Committee on Basic Education, said the 2024 national budget provides that unused balances of the Higher Education Development Fund (HEDF) can be used to pay the deficiencies between the 2024 allocation for free higher education in SUCs and the program recipients and expenditures, which is based on the actual number of enrollees and fees approved by SUCs’ board of regents or trustees.
According to the Commission on Higher Education website, the HEDF is intended to make CHED more readily responsive to the needs of its constituencies, especially the higher education institutions and their development programs. It was envisioned to be an autonomous buffer fund that can support CHED’s fiscal independence and adequacy.
Gatchalian said projected deficiencies in free higher education would amount to P4.1 billion. On the other hand, the Philippine Association of State Universities and Colleges projects that around 1.8 million students will avail of free higher education this year.
Gatchalian was the one who proposed the use of the HEDF to fund potential deficiencies, noting that data from the Bureau of Treasury showed the accumulated net balance of the fund has reached P10.16 billion as of May 22, 2022, which is enough to cover the funding gap for free higher education in SUCs for 2024.
“The HEDF, however, will only cover free higher education deficiencies for fiscal year 2024,” he clarified.
Gatchalian earlier said that there is a need to address the looming funding shortfall as it will affect the capacity of SUCs to invest in laboratories, classrooms, and other facilities which, in turn, will affect the quality of education that government-run colleges and universities deliver.
