For years, the Philippines has looked ahead with optimism, banking on its so-called “demographic sweet spot.” With around two-thirds of the population between the ages of 15 and 65, the country seemed poised for rapid economic growth—a young, able-bodied workforce ready to fuel productivity and progress.
But that long-promised advantage is now in jeopardy. A Senate public hearing this week revealed a stark truth that undercuts the narrative.
Preliminary results from the Philippine Statistics Authority’s 2024 Functional Literacy, Education, and Mass Media Survey show that about 18 million Filipinos who have completed basic education are functionally illiterate. They can read and write, technically—but they cannot comprehend what they read.
Add to that the 5.8 million who cannot read or write at all, and nearly 25 million Filipinos are effectively sidelined from meaningfully participating in a modern, knowledge-driven economy.
Senator Sherwin Gatchalian, chairman of the Senate Committee on Basic Education, described this as “the gravity of our situation.” He’s right. Under a more honest definition, only 60 million Filipinos now qualify as functionally literate—one-fourth less than the estimate using an older definition.
This is no longer just an education problem. It is an economic reckoning. A young population is not a demographic advantage unless it is equipped for the demands of the steadily evolving future.
What good is a promise if it cannot read? Students who decode words without understanding them are not learning—they are being left behind, missing out on the opportunities offered by the new economy. This is not just a literacy gap; it is a failure to prepare a workforce for the rigors of a knowledge-based future. When comprehension breaks down, so does opportunity.
Government programs are in place—but unless action is swift and focused, the opportunity may pass.
The clock is ticking. Midnight is coming.
