The Department of Education (DepEd) has strengthened oversight of its localized classroom construction program as 168 local government units (LGUs) move forward with projects aimed at easing the country’s chronic shortage of a place to study.

Education Secretary Sonny Angara said the agency is closely monitoring the implementation of projects under supplemental memoranda of agreement signed with 168 local government units (LGUs), comprising 72 provinces, 73 cities, and 23 municipalities, to ensure compliance with national standards, timelines, and quality requirements.

“Our goal is not simply to build school buildings, but to ensure that every peso spent results in quality, safe classrooms for our students,” Angara said in a statement, adding that the department has tightened monitoring to ensure projects meet quality and accountability standards.

DepEd said 130 of the 149 LGUs currently under active monitoring are in various pre-procurement stages, including preparation of detailed engineering designs, program of work, bidding activities and market scoping. 

Nearly 400 new schools eyed

These projects cover the construction requirements of 358 public schools.

Three LGUs, meanwhile, have reached the procurement award stage for projects covering 22 school sites, the department said.

DepEd added that it is using digital validation and monitoring systems to track the progress of the remaining LGUs and verify compliance with project requirements.

The localized classroom construction program is part of the government’s efforts to address the country’s longstanding classroom deficit. 

The Second Congressional Commission on Education (EDCOM II) has estimated that the Philippines faces a backlog of more than 165,000 classrooms, with the figure projected to increase further if construction fails to keep pace with rising enrollment.

Earlier this year, DepEd began entering into agreements with LGUs to speed up school-building projects, arguing that local governments can complete construction more quickly by leveraging local procurement and implementation capacity while remaining subject to national technical and auditing standards.