EDUCATION Secretary Sonny Angara signed a memorandum on Monday mandating Early Procurement Activities (EPA) across the Department of Education to ensure the timely delivery of educational materials.

According to DepEd, this initiative aims to fast-track the procurement of goods and services, including textbooks, learning tools, and infrastructure projects, for Fiscal Year 2025.

“We are making every effort to improve and speed up our procurement process,” Angara said.

DepEd explained that EPA allows the agency to initiate procurement activities early, ensuring contracts for goods, infrastructure projects, and consulting services are awarded before the next fiscal year.

The process covers all procurement stages, from posting opportunities to the Bids and Awards Committee’s recommendation to the Head of Procuring Entities.

This will apply to projects through Competitive Bidding and Alternative Methods, excluding certain exceptions such as repeat orders, emergency cases, and small-value procurements.

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 issued by January 2025.