Manila: The Department of Education (DepEd) on Tuesday recorded a significant 289 percent increase in its procurement of textbooks for public schools over the past year. In a statement, DepEd Secretary Sonny Angara said the agency's milestone is part of the immediate reforms aimed at ensuring quality education for learners in the Philippines.
According to Philippines News Agency, the DepEd has procured 105 titles, which is 289 percent higher than the total procurement output of the past decade. From 2012 to 2023, the DepEd only procured 27 titles, with complete textbooks available only for Grades 5 and 6 levels, as noted by the Second Congressional Commission on Education (EDCOM 2).
Secretary Angara emphasized the importance of complete and timely educational materials, stating, "If we want to elevate the quality of learning, there must be complete, right, and timely materials coming in to schools." He also highlighted the need to avoid past issues of delayed or incomplete materials, advocating for early preparation to ensure learning takes precedence.
To maintain this momentum, the DepEd plans to continue implementing Republic Act 1200, or the "New Government Procurement Act," alongside DepEd Order 8, series of 2025. These measures aim to conduct pre-selection and title evaluation before the bidding phase, preventing delays and ensuring timely delivery of learning materials. This process marks a departure from the previous method, where quality assurance occurred post-qualification, often leading to procurement failures.
The DepEd is expected to continue accelerating textbook and material procurement with increased budget support from the Senate and the House of Representatives next year. For 2026, the agency secured PHP29.16 billion for 103.9 million learning resources, surpassing this year's 97 million materials.
Additionally, the DepEd plans to conduct quality assurance on at least 176 textbooks and teachers' manual titles, alongside 360 potential learning resource exemplars and 2,000 self-learning resource titles. The agency also procured educational toys for kindergarten learners to enhance 'play-based' education.
