| Photo DepED
PASIG CITY, Philippines—Education Secretary Sonny Angara has signed DepEd Memorandum 649 to ensure the timely delivery of educational materials and smooth implementation of projects through Early Procurement Activities (EPA) across the department.
The memorandum is designed to fast-track the procurement of goods and services, including textbooks, learning tools, and infrastructure projects for Fiscal Year (FY) 2025.
“We are making every effort to improve our procurement process and accelerate its pace,” said Secretary Angara during the recent House of Representatives Committee on Appropriations hearing.
The EPA allows procurement entities to initiate activities early, ensuring contracts for goods, infrastructure projects, and consulting services are awarded before the following fiscal year. This process covers all procurement stages, pending budget approval, from posting opportunities to the Bids and Awards Committee (BAC) recommendation to the Head of Procuring Entities (HoPE). It applies to procurement projects via Competitive Bidding and Alternative Methods, excluding certain exceptions such as repeat orders, emergency cases, and small-value procurements.
All DepEd governance levels will engage in EPA for FY 2025. The Central Office will focus on high-priority projects, including textbooks, e-Learning Cart packages, testing materials, and learning tools and equipment. Regional and Schools Division Offices (ROs and SDOs) will also conduct EPA for their respective projects, including those overseen by the Central Office, such as smart TV packages, laptops, school furniture, electrification projects, school health facilities, and the construction of last-mile school buildings.
According to DepEd’s timeline, the bidding process for these projects will begin in October 2024, with contracts expected to be awarded and Notices to Proceed (NTPs) issued by January 2025.
–With Jay Domingo/PDM
