THE national government should consider devolving the delivery of basic education to local governments (LGUs) that can demonstrate the capacity, resources and governance systems needed to improve learning outcomes.
In her presentation, ‘Can LGUs Manage the Delivery of Basic Education?’ Synergia president Milwida Guevarra argued for an ‘asymmetric devolution’ model under which not all LGUs would automatically assume greater responsibility for basic education. Instead, Guevarra argued devolution could initially be granted to local governments that meet clear standards of good education governance.
The proposal effectively shifts the debate from whether education should simply be decentralized to which LGUs are ready to take on greater responsibility-and how their performance should be measured.
Guevarra cited evidence indicating that stronger local participation can translate into better learning outcomes. She pointed to a positive correlation among National Achievement Test scores, functional Local School Boards (LSBs) and the level of LSB engagement with communities.
Guevarra commended the platform created by the late Naga City mayor Jesse Robredo to pursue innovations in education.
‘You have to reinvent the local school board following the Jesse Robreno model. And that really means bringing in many stakeholders who have the expertise, the business community, you can, you know, demonstrate and mentor them better management, financial management,’ said Guevarra in her presentation on Tuesday in the forum organized by the Phinma and the Philippine Business for Education (PBEd).
‘They can bring in the private schools so that they can learn from recent techniques and recent research. They can bring in the farmers, the fishermen, the drivers, because everybody should have a stake. So aside from broadening membership, they should broaden their functions. Unfortunately, under the law, local school boards are only powerful enough to disperse the special education fund, if they change the names of schools,’ added Guevarra, also a finance undersecretary during the Ramos administration.
She also cited Synergeia Foundation’s 2025 experience in Iloilo, where the average reading performance of Grade 3 students in 12 LGUs increased from 74 percent to 88 percent in tests covering sounds, blending, comprehension and critical thinking.
Under the Guevarra model, LGUs would be given more responsibility, more accountability, and a greater role in teacher development.