The “Agri Tayo, Lab for All” project aims for 700 units nationwide
The Department of Education (DepEd) and First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos have launched a nationwide school-based hydroponics project that will put greenhouse facilities in public schools as part of the “Agri Tayo, Lab for All” program.
The project was launched on Thursday, October 29, 2026, at Las Piñas National High School and Parañaque National High School, together with Education Secretary Sonny Angara and the Philippine Reclamation Authority (PRA).
The first phase aims to build hydroponics greenhouses in 200 schools nationwide, scaling up to 700 units overall. It is funded through the Social Environmental Fund generated from reclamation projects.
“The hydroponics project is a big contribution to make vegetable gardening in our schools more advanced and efficient. Not all schools have adequate space or fertile soil. So this initiative is important because the Gulayan sa Paaralan Program becomes possible even if space is limited,” Angara said in Filipino and English.
Angara noted that hydroponics uses up to 90 percent less water than traditional farming, making it a climate adaptation strategy as the country braces for a very strong El Niño. The project modernizes DepEd’s long-running Gulayan sa Paaralan Program.
Fresh vegetables from the greenhouses will supplement the School-Based Feeding Program. The facilities will also serve as hands-on laboratories where learners can observe plant growth, nutrient management, water use and photosynthesis.
The project also supports the Agri-Fishery Arts and agro-entrepreneurship electives under the strengthened Senior High School curriculum, helping students build livelihood and technical-vocational skills.
In the initial phase, beneficiary schools in Metro Manila and provinces including Cavite, Cagayan, Pangasinan, Pampanga and Masbate will each receive a greenhouse. Las Piñas and Parañaque national high schools received two units each.