Tackling Iloilo’s low functional literacy

THE DEPARTMENT of Education (DepEd) Schools Division of Iloilo’s rollout of the “Kasimaryo Ko, Tudluan Ko” program is a response to the province being flagged in surveys as among those with the lowest functional literacy rates in the country.

This is not a minor blemish on the province’s report card. Low literacy is not merely an academic shortcoming; it is a social and economic handicap. When young people and adults alike struggle to read, write, or do basic arithmetic, they are cut off from opportunities that could lift them and their families out of poverty. It stifles productivity, weakens competitiveness, and keeps entire communities trapped in cycles of disadvantage.

The fact that Iloilo has to mount a literacy recovery program for individuals as old as 65 speaks volumes about the generational breadth of the problem. Decades of educational gaps, compounded by poverty and the severe learning losses during the COVID-9 pandemic years, have left scars that cannot be ignored. Dr. Ernesto Servillon Jr., Schools Division Superintendent, admitted as much when he explained how surveys showed Iloilo near the bottom in functional literacy, prompting the division to act.

We must recognize that this is not simply a classroom issue. Hunger, malnutrition, and economic hardship have as much to do with literacy as the lessons written on a blackboard. When children go to school on an empty stomach, their ability to learn is diminished. When parents cannot support at-home learning because they themselves were deprived of education, the cycle of disadvantage continues.

This is why the literacy drive must be seen as a whole-of-community effort. DepEd cannot do this alone. Barangay officials, Sangguniang Kabataan leaders, and national agencies such as the Department of Labor and Employment — which has provided 100 interns to assist in the program — must all play their part. Even more, the private sector and civic organizations must step in. The fight against illiteracy is a fight for a stronger Iloilo.

The local gains reported — 450 schools with zero non-readers as of June — are encouraging. But the numbers also reveal how far there is to go, with hundreds more schools still struggling. These should serve as a wake-up call, not a reason for complacency.

Iloilo aspires to be a center of growth in Western Visayas, but growth will be hollow if its people remain shackled by illiteracy. The province cannot afford to leave thousands of its residents unable to read, write, or count.

The urgency is crystal clear: literacy goes beyond books — it is about building a future where every Ilonggo has the skills to participate fully in society and the economy.