Filed
First Reading
Second Reading — Committee
Second Reading — Plenary
Third Reading
Approved
EnactedNow
Bangsamoro Autonomy Act No. 40
In forceCabinet measureAn Act Establishing the Bangsamoro Science High School System, Providing Funds Therefor, and for Other Purposes
Qualified Bangsamoro learners can attend a science high school free of charge, with scholarships, stipends and allowances, under a curriculum designed to make them globally competitive in science and technology.
Filed
First Reading
Second Reading — Committee
Second Reading — Plenary
Third Reading
Approved
EnactedNow
Signed into law and operative unless later amended or repealed.
What this measure does
This builds the region its own science high school system, and pegs it explicitly to the Philippine Science High School — the national specialist schools that are among the hardest places in the country to get into. Education in it is free to qualified Bangsamoro learners, and the Board may add scholarships, stipends and allowances on top.
The curriculum carries one element the national model does not: Values Education, defined in the act as a subject aimed at strengthening the foundations of faith among learners as they are trained in science and technology. The Mufti of the Bangsamoro Darul Ifta' sits on the Board of Trustees alongside the science and education ministers, the President of the Mindanao State University System, the chair of Parliament's science committee, two private sector representatives, and the president of the alumni association.
Money given to the System stays with it. Legacies and gifts are exempt from Bangsamoro taxes, and all revenues and donations go into a dedicated BSHS Fund used exclusively for the System's purposes.
And two provisions rarely found together in this registry: Section 15 requires gender equity and a non-discriminatory policy to address disparities so students and faculty of both genders can thrive in science education, and Section 17 requires feedback and grievance mechanisms that let students, faculty and staff report misconduct fairly and confidentially.
Why it was proposed
The policy section makes two claims at once — that the region will run a complete education system conforming to national standards, and that it will do so within a framework relevant to the needs, ideals and aspirations of the Bangsamoro people. This act is where those two commitments meet.
Who it affects
- Bangsamoro learners with talent in science and mathematics, particularly those whose families could never fund specialist schooling.
- Families, for whom the school is free.
- Faculty and staff, covered by the gender equity and grievance provisions.
- Alumni, who hold a permanent seat on the governing board.
- Communities near a campus, who may be consulted through the citizen's arm a Campus Director can convene.
Who would implement it
- Ministry of Science and Technology, which has administrative control and supervision and issues the implementing rules
- Board of Trustees, which approves admission criteria, curricula, scholarships and graduation
- Executive Committee, which screens and selects students and scholarship recipients
- Campus Directors, each the administrative and academic head of a campus
Funding
Carries an appropriation. ₱55,000,000 to support initial implementation, with such sums as needed thereafter in the annual General Appropriations Act. The System also holds its own BSHS Fund of revenues and donations, and gifts to it are exempt from Bangsamoro taxes.
What changes if it becomes law
- Free, specialist science secondary education becomes available in the region rather than only outside it.
- Admission, curriculum, scholarships and graduation are governed by a single Board.
- Faith formation is written into a science curriculum as a named subject.
- Gender equity and a confidential grievance route are required across the System.
- Donations to the schools are tax-exempt and ring-fenced.
Raised during deliberations
No published record of the debate on this measure. Parliament’s journals cover sittings up to March 2023 only, and no committee report on it has been published.
What to notice
The decision to peg the System to Philippine Science High School standards is the load-bearing one, and it cuts both ways. It sets a real benchmark — the national schools are genuinely selective and well-resourced, and matching them is a demanding commitment rather than a rhetorical one. It also means the region has chosen to compete on the national scale rather than define its own, which is a confident thing for a young education system to do.
The Values Education provision is where the act does something the national model does not, and it is worth reading precisely. It is not framed as a constraint on science teaching; the definition says it strengthens the foundations of faith *as* learners are trained in science and technology, and Section 4 calls it a way of strengthening the foundation of science education and faith together. Whether that works in practice depends entirely on the curriculum the Board approves — the act sets the intention and leaves the substance open.
The practical limit is scale. Section 10 provides expressly for the case where the System 'only has one campus', which tells you what was expected at the outset, and ₱55 million establishes a school rather than a network. The provision that will decide how far this reaches is Section 8's enrolment quota policy — free education for those admitted is a real benefit, but the number admitted is a Board decision the act does not constrain.