DepEd 7 Faces Funding Shortfall to Rebuild Quake-Damaged Schools in Cebu

After the magnitude-6.9 earthquake on the night of September 30, 2025, which struck northern Cebu, the Department of Education (DepEd) Region 7 declared it lacks sufficient funds to rebuild or repair the many schools damaged.

Director Salustiano Jimenez explained that while some emergency funding has been released, it still falls far short of what is needed.

Damage and Disruption

The quake badly affected at least nine northern local government units: Bogo City, San Remigio, Daanbantayan, Medellin, Tabogon, Sogod, Borbon, Tabuelan, and Bantayan. Among them, Bogo City was hit especially hard, with all 38 of its public schools sustaining damage.

DepEd Secretary Juan Edgardo “Sonny” Angara gave updated figures: of over 7,500 classrooms impacted throughout Cebu, 5,587 sustained minor damage, 803 were severely damaged, and 1,187 were destroyed.

The human cost is also severe: more than 19,000 students and nearly 1,000 teachers have had their schooling disrupted. There were 12 student fatalities and two teacher deaths reported as of October 4.

Funding Comes Up Short

The 2025 General Appropriations Act allocated ₱240 million to Cebu Province and ₱20 million specifically for new school buildings in four towns. However, those funds are earmarked for new construction, not for repairing or retrofitting disaster-damaged classrooms.

In response to the crisis, the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) released ₱375 million in emergency funding: ₱150 million went to the provincial government, and ₱75 million each to San Remigio, Bogo City, and Medellin.

Even so, Jimenez emphasized, this sum still falls far short of what is needed to fully reconstruct and restore all damaged school facilities.

What DepEd Is Doing Now

To maintain learning despite unsafe buildings, DepEd 7 has suspended classes in affected structures. They’ve turned to alternative methods, especially modular learning.

All learning modules for all four quarters have been delivered to the division offices in the region. DepEd also plans to build temporary learning spaces, targeted for completion within a month, while full repairs and reconstruction are being planned.

National Response & Next Steps

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and Education Secretary Angara visited Bogo City on October 2 to assess the damage firsthand and distribute “EduKahon” kits — ready-to-use school recovery packs designed to help students and teachers in disaster-affected areas resume learning.

However, many important details are still uncertain. DepEd’s engineers are still completing structural damage assessments.

A joint validation with the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) is required before larger funds can be released. That step will also help finalize the list of schools needing full reconstruction.

DepEd 7 faces a daunting task: repairing or rebuilding many school buildings damaged by the earthquake, while grappling with funding that is clearly inadequate.

Immediate efforts focus on ensuring students can continue to learn—via modular instruction and temporary spaces—while longer-term solutions hinge on thorough damage assessments and securing additional financial support, both from government and private sources.