QUEZON City Rep. Ralph Tulfo urged the government to liberalize the establishment and operation of foreign universities in the Philippines to provide quality education to the youth.

The solon stressed the need to liberalize Philippine higher education to allow reputable, government-recognized, and properly accredited foreign universities to open and operate campuses in the country without having to go to Congress to have a special law enacted.

“The Philippines should be a global education hub for leading higher education institutions, the likes of the University of Oxford, University of Cambridge, University of Tokyo, National University of Singapore, University of Melbourne, University of Toronto, Columbia University, Harvard University, Cornell University, Yale University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Stanford University, and the University of California,” Tulfo said.

As long as the applicant foreign school complies with the constitutional requirement on schools with enrollment of aliens and for diplomatic personnel dependents, and the minimum standards of the Department of Education, Commission on Higher Education and Technical Education and Skills Development Authority, Tulfo said foreign schools or international schools should be permitted to operate and enroll students.

“These foreign schools are not in direct competition against local private schools. They are specific to niche clients, high-income brackets, and on high admission requirements,” the solon added.

He further explained the Philippines should not be off-limits to foreign schools, stressing the cynical view of international education is isolationist nationalism.

“The millions of Filipinos who migrated to other countries in search of international education and overseas jobs are clear proof Filipinos are not isolationist,” he said.

“The universities are where our professionals and most civil servants come from. More Philippine universities, including state universities, should be enabled to join the ranks of the world’s best,” the solon added.

Among 1,799 universities from over 100 participating countries, Ateneo de Manila University ranked highest at 301-400, followed by University of the Philippines with ranking 801-1000, De La Salle University-Manila at 1201-1500, and Mapua University at 1501 plus.

Tulfo said Philippine universities must gain better access to funds aside from allocations in the national and local budgets, adding that access and affordability of loans for operations and capital outlays of universities must be improved.