DepEd chief orders early procurement of materials

EDUCATION Secretary Juan Edgardo Angara has directed the implementation of the Early Procurement Activities (EPA) process. Angara signed Memorandum 49, series of 2024, mandating the EPA. The move was made "to ensure the timely delivery of educational materials and the smooth implementation of projects," the DepEd said in a statement Monday. "This initiative is designed to fast-track the procurement of goods and services, including textbooks, learning tools, and infrastructure projects, for Fiscal Year 2025," it said. Angara signed the memorandum last week. "We are making every effort to improve our procurement process and accelerate its pace," he told lawmakers when the DepEd and the House Committee on Appropriations met this month. The EPA allows the DepEd to "initiate activities early, ensuring contracts for goods, infrastructure projects, and consulting services are awarded ahead of the following fiscal year." The process includes posting opportunities to the recommendation of the Bids and Awards Committee (BAC) to the Head of Procuring Entities (HoPE) — pending budget approval. It applies to all procurement projects that are bid out, except repeat orders, emergency cases, and small-value procurements, the DepEd said. For 2025, all its governance levels would engage in EPA. "At the Central Office, this 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," it said. Bidding for such projects will begin in October, with contracts expected to be awarded and Notices to Proceed issued by January 2025.