MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) is stepping up to help tackle the country’s massive classroom shortage by funding the construction of 125 school buildings nationwide, but the state-run gaming agency says it will keep its hands off one crucial part of the process: the bidding for construction projects.
PAGCOR Chairman and CEO Alejandro Tengco said the agency’s nationwide school-building initiative, launched in partnership with the Department of Education (DepEd), aims to deliver around 1,500 classrooms by 2027.
The project comes as the Philippines faces a deepening infrastructure challenge in public education, with the Second Congressional Commission on Education (EDCOM II) estimating the country’s classroom backlog at more than 166,000 classrooms.
₱1.37 Billion Initially Committed, More Funding Planned
PAGCOR initially committed ₱1.37 billion for the first phase of the nationwide program. Earlier reports from the Philippine News Agency and PAGCOR said the initiative is part of a broader two-year plan involving 125 school buildings, with the agency committing billions of pesos to help accelerate classroom construction across the country.
Under the arrangement, DepEd will identify and recommend priority school projects, while PAGCOR will provide funding through participating local government units (LGUs).
“The Department of Education” will be responsible for vetting and recommending the school buildings to be constructed, while PAGCOR’s role is focused on funding, Tengco told lawmakers during a House appropriations hearing on the agency’s proposed 2027 budget.
The first batch of beneficiary LGUs was formally included in the program through an agreement signed in March 2026, with each recipient expected to receive funding for a multi-story school building with classrooms and essential facilities.
PAGCOR Draws the Line: No Role in Bidding
Perhaps the most significant clarification from Tengco is that PAGCOR will not participate in the bidding and procurement process for the construction projects.
Instead, the agency will release funds to qualified LGUs after required documents and conditions are met. The LGUs, working within the government’s procurement rules and in coordination with DepEd, will handle the bidding process.
The separation of roles is significant because it places PAGCOR primarily in the position of funding partner rather than project procurer, while the implementing local governments take responsibility for selecting contractors and overseeing procurement requirements.
The Bigger Problem: A Classroom Crisis That Won’t Wait
The promise of 1,500 new classrooms could bring relief to thousands of students, but it represents only a fraction of the country’s enormous infrastructure gap.
EDCOM II has estimated that the Philippines’ classroom shortage exceeds 166,000, while more than 51,000 classrooms could be at least 50 years old by 2028—highlighting not just a shortage of rooms, but the growing challenge of aging school infrastructure.
The government is also pursuing other large-scale solutions. DepEd’s Public-Private Partnership for School Infrastructure Project Phase III (PSIP III) is currently moving through procurement and is designed as a much larger national effort to expand access to modern and resilient learning facilities. The PPP Center has described the project as one of the country’s major education infrastructure initiatives, with bidding already underway for initial contract packages.
Meanwhile, DepEd has also strengthened its localized classroom-building program with partner LGUs, reflecting a broader government strategy of involving local governments in speeding up the delivery of school infrastructure.
Can the New Buildings Make a Real Difference?
For communities selected under the PAGCOR program, the answer could be immediate: more classrooms could mean fewer overcrowded classes and safer, more suitable spaces for learning.
But the bigger question remains whether multiple government programs—national, local and private-sector-backed—can finally move fast enough to close a classroom gap that has accumulated over decades.
PAGCOR says it is committed to seeing the classrooms completed by 2027. For millions of Filipino students still studying in overcrowded or aging facilities, the real test will not simply be how much money is pledged—but how quickly those promises become actual classrooms.
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