The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) today affirmed that 728,820 students are already learning in 685 school buildings completed under the Support to Barangay Development Program (SBDP) from 2021 to 2025, spanning 660 insurgency-cleared barangays and amounting to P1.787 billion.

The Department said these new classrooms represent more than infrastructure. They are a clear sign that government is reaching communities that once lived far from basic services. With 834 classrooms now open, children who used to walk long distances or study in unsafe makeshift spaces finally have learning environments that protect their wellbeing and strengthen their future.

In Paoc Norte, Sta. Lucia, Ilocos Sur, Master Teacher II Agripino M. Rosimo Jr. shared that the need for a new school building was first raised in an RCSP consultation in their municipality, and that he later helped monitor its completion.

“Ang proyekto ay hindi lamang nakapagpatayo ng mga silid-aralan kundi nakapagpatatag din ng ugnayan at malasakit sa pagitan ng paaralan at komunidad. Nagbubunga pa ito ng mas matatag na pundasyon para sa edukasyon at kaunlaran ng mga kabataan,” Rosimo Jr. said.

In Saliducon, Sta. Cruz, Davao del Sur, one of the poorest barangays in the area, Punong Barangay Chona Canoy Eting recalled how the classrooms built under the SBDP finally resolved the lack of space in their elementary school.

“Dati sa ilalim ng puno ng santol kami nagkaklase nung nag-aaral pa ako. Ngayon, naging komportable sila sa silid aralan at mas nai-ingganyo na ang komunidad na papasukin sa paaralan ang mga anak nila dahil maganda at matiwasay na ang mga silid paaralan,” Eting said.

As of October 2025, the DILG reported that 68 more school building projects are in the implementation phase, 19 are in procurement, and 95 are in pre-procurement. Once finished, a total of 1,083 classrooms will rise in these 660 former conflict-affected barangays.

The RCSP and SBDP are flagship components of the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict and advance President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.’s whole-of-nation effort to secure long-term development and peace in communities that once faced instability.

Other SBDP projects include water systems, barangay health stations, agricultural facilities, housing and rehabilitation initiatives, farm-to-market roads, and rural electrification.