DepEd: 19M Filipinos functionally illiterate, not HS grads

The Department of Education (DepEd) clarified that nearly 19 million Filipinos identified as functionally illiterate in the 2024 Functional Literacy, Education and Mass Media Survey (FLEMMS) are not specifically high school graduates but individuals aged 10 to 64.

Undersecretary Ronald Mendoza explained in a position paper that the survey covers a broad segment of the population regardless of educational attainment, with only about 11.6 million Junior High School and Senior High School learners enrolled for the 2024-2025 school year.

The Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) recently revised its definitions of 'basic' and 'functional' literacy to include high-level comprehension skills, leading to a decrease in overall literacy rates from 95.1% and 93.1% under previous criteria to the current figures of 90.0% and 70.8%, respectively.

DepEd reaffirmed its commitment to addressing literacy challenges while emphasizing the need for increased investment and awareness, with Education Secretary Sonny Angara stating that every learner must be functionally literate.

Assistant Secretary Jerome Buenviaje underscored the importance of developing learners' literacy skills early on and highlighted that addressing functional illiteracy requires a multi-sectoral approach.