The Department of Education (DepEd) on Friday said it has strengthened its project monitoring framework because it partners with 168 local government units (LGUs) to construct classrooms nationwide.
“We’re working tirelessly to make sure these classrooms are built with efficiency and transparency as this infrastructure is the bedrock of a top quality learning environment,” Education Secretary Juan Edgardo “Sonny” M. Angara said in a news release.
“We’ll proceed to carry our partners and our internal systems to the best level of accountability to make sure these projects remain on target,” he added.
Based on the agency, 72 provinces, 73 cities, and 23 municipalities have signed Supplemental Memoranda of Agreement (MOA) for the localized classroom constructing program.
The improved monitoring framework goals to be sure that local infrastructure projects align with national timelines, digital validation, and strict quality protocols. All LGU-implemented projects are ordered to strictly adhere to DepEd’s technical standards, safety protocols, and the Recent Government Procurement Act.
DepEd said that 130 of the 149 monitored LGUs are currently conducting pre-procurement activities, including pre-bidding, posting, opening of bids, preparation of the Program of Work (POW) and Detailed Architectural and Engineering Design (DAED), and market scoping. These activities cover construction requirements for 358 schools nationwide.
Three LGUs have also advanced to the procurement award stage for 22 school sites.
The agency noted that it continues to make use of INSIGHTED, a real-time digital validation and monitoring system, to trace construction progress and monitor the remaining LGUs.
“Our goal isn’t merely to construct buildings, but to be sure that every peso spent translates into quality and secure classrooms for our learners,” Mr. Angara said in Filipino.
“Under the directive of President Marcos, we proceed to strengthen monitoring to be sure that every project meets our high standards,” he added.
The localized classroom construction program complements the agency’s other infrastructure initiatives to deal with the present classroom gap of over 144,000.
DepEd has allocated P65.9 billion from its P1.015-trillion 2026 budget for the development of 24,964 latest classrooms, and P7.7 billion for the repair and rehabilitation of 11,886 classrooms. — Almira Louise S. Martinez