CHED-UniFAST, DBP sign pact to implement student loan program

The Commission on Higher Education-Unified Student Financial Assistance System for Tertiary Education (CHED-UniFAST) on Wednesday signed a memorandum of agreement with the Development Bank of the Philippines for the launch of the full implementation of the Student Loan Program for Tertiary Education-Short Term basis (SLPTE-ST).

SLPTE-ST is among the programs under Republic Act 10931 or the Universal Access to Quality Tertiary Education Act (UAQTEA) with a budget of P1 billion for Academic Year 2018-2019, the CHED said in a statement.

The loan program can be availed of by students with liquidity problems who are enrolled in state universities and colleges (SUCs), CHED-recognized local universities and colleges (LUCs) and private higher education institutions (HEIs) that are listed in the UniFAST Registry of Institutions and Programs.

The SLPTE-ST is given to qualified student beneficiaries during the enrollment period at the beginning of a particular term and must be paid within the payment loan term period of 12 months.

An initial maximum loanable amount of P60,000 may be used by the SLPTE-ST student beneficiaries for tuition fee and other school fees, books, tools, equipment, stipend, and/or review payment for licensure examination.

CHED and UniFAST chairman Prospero E. De Vera III and DBP executive vice president Fe Susan Prado signed the agreement "to provide timely and automated disbursement requirements for Universal Access to Quality Tertiary Education Act's SLPTE-ST and other scholarships, grants and financial assistance programs."

“This partnership between CHED/UniFAST and DBP is the long-awaited final component of RA 10931 to help needy students pursue undergraduate and graduate studies in public and private schools by providing them short term loans for their education needs,” De Vera said

CHED said the DBP, as a UniFAST partner in the disbursement of financial assistance grants, shall use a payment scheme called Direct Remittance Servicing System (DRSS) through its DBP Savings Account Debit Card that can be used in automated teller machines (ATMs) and point-of-sale (POS) terminals nationwide. —LDF, GMA News