Vice President Sara Z. Duterte (left) receives Ambassador Steven J. Robinson, AO (right) and officials of the Australian Embassy. (Credit: Office of Vice President Sara Z. Duterte)

PASIG CITY, 14 July 2022 – Australian Ambassador Steven J. Robinson, AO called on Vice President and concurrent Secretary of Education, Hon. Sara Z. Duterte, yesterday at the Department of Education Central Office in Pasig City.

Vice President Duterte thanked Ambassador Robinson for Australia’s support for the education sector in the Philippines and said that she looked forward to continue working with Australia in enhancing this sector. The DepEd intends to set targets for gauging the improvement in student performance, and continues to review the effectiveness of the K-12 curriculum.

Ambassador Robinson apprised Vice President Duterte about the programs in education that Australia is pursuing in the Philippines, including the construction of 509 classrooms across the country, training for 33,500 teachers, and implementation of curriculum development for children. A diverse group of students benefit from Australia’s Education Pathways program, such as students in madrasahs who can integrate smoothly into normal schools, as well as students who need technical training in view of the challenges presented by the previous two years of lockdowns.

The Australian Embassy emphasized that all these programs are being implemented through and in cooperation with the DepEd.

Ambassador Robinson also shared that Australia provides 80 scholarships for Filipinos to study Masters and PhD degrees.

Vice President Duterte (fifth from the left) and Ambassador Robinson (seventh from the right) joined by officials from the Office of the Vice President, the Department of Education, the Department of Foreign Affairs, and the Australian Embassy in Manila. (Credit: Office of Vice President Sara Z. Duterte)

The Philippines and Australia celebrated 76 years of diplomatic relations in 2022. Significant contributions of Australia’s aid program to Philippine development efforts are in the areas of basic education, training and human resource development, public financial management, health, rural and community development, governance, assistance to vulnerable groups, infrastructure, and support to the Mindanao peace and development process.