COTABATO CITY — One hundred seventy nine students from various secondary schools in Maguindanao are recipients of a scholarship grant from the Department of Labor and Employment-Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (DOLE-ARMM).

Aimed at increasing access to decent work for the underprivileged youth and discouraging school dropouts, the educational subsidy is implemented through the Youth Employment and Migration (YEM) program of DOLE-ARMM.

The educational assistance, which started last year, is a three-year joint program supported by the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), International Labor Organization (ILO) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM).

"From three school beneficiaries last year, we were able to lobby an additional of three schools this year with a total of 179 student beneficiaries," DOLE-ARMM Secretary Myra M. Alih said.

The new school-beneficiaries include the Datu Saudi Ampatuan Memorial High School in Datu Saudi, Mamasapano, National High School in Mamasapano, Maguindanao National High School in Shariff Aguak town, Parang National High School in Parang, Talayan National High School in Talayan and Buluan National High School in Buluan.

Beneficiaries of the grant comprise poor but deserving third and fourth year high school students.

Under the program, each recipient-student receives P1,000 monthly allowance plus P500 worth of school projects monthly.

Maguindanao is among the four provinces in the entire country including Agusan, Antique and Masbate identified as recipients of the program. (PNA)

DCT/LDV/NYP