More Philippine children staying out of school: Govt.

This is from AFP.
This is a bad sign. I was surprised when I lived in the Philippines to find that school children wore uniforms. Eliminating the uniforms will help somewhat but basically the system needs more money. Salaries are poor for teachers as well, especially in rural areas. There is corruption too in determining who gets what jobs where from what I understand. Given conditions such as this it is not surprising that the Maoist insurgency manages to survive into the twenty first century. What is surprising is that the Arroyo government manages to survive as well!

More Philippines children staying out of school: govt
22 hours ago
MANILA (AFP) — One in six school-age children in the Philippines is being deprived of education and the number is rising steadily, the government said Monday.
The percentage of children enrolled in primary school was down to 83 percent in the 2006-2007 school year from 90 percent five years earlier, the National Statistical Coordination Board said in a study.
The numbers are even worse for secondary education at 59 percent, though they have been steady over five years.
The data "indicate that the country is still far from achieving the goal of providing basic education to all," the government agency said.
President Gloria Arroyo acknowledged last month that the rising cost of food and energy may be pricing education out of the reach of some Filipino families.
She ordered schools not to require their students to wear uniforms to reduce the cost.