DAGUPAN CITY — President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr., accompanied by First Lady Louise Araneta-Marcos and Education Secretary Sonny Angara, on Monday led the launch of the nationwide distribution of more than 231,000 laptops for public school teachers.

They spearheaded the initial distribution of 209 Apple MacBook Neo units to 10 public schools in this city, marking the start of the rollout under the Department of Education’s (DepEd) Computerization Program.

“Today, I am happy to be able to report that we are currently procuring more than 230,000 additional laptops for our teachers. This will consist of around 169,000 Apple Macbook Neo units, and more than 62,000 Acer units,” Marcos said during the ceremonial turnover.

“In addition, we also procured around 3,600 Apple Macbook Neo laptops for the admin staff so they can process the necessary paperwork faster to help keep our schools running efficiently,” he added.

Marcos said the laptops would help teachers pursue further studies, integrate digital tools into their teaching, and accomplish their work more efficiently.

Angara emphasized that providing modern technology would help ease the workload and address the longstanding challenges faced by teachers.

Of the 231,725 laptops allocated for teachers, 169,008 are MacBook Neo units while 62,717 are Windows-based laptops. An additional 3,646 MacBook Neo devices will be distributed to administrative officers.

Each laptop package includes built-in productivity tools, nationwide delivery, professional training and a five-year extended warranty, with an estimated commercial value of more than PHP70,000.

Through competitive public bidding, DepEd said it saved at least PHP1.4 billion compared with standard retail prices.

To help educators maximize the new devices in the classroom, DepEd and the National Educators Academy of the Philippines will roll out GuroXL, a comprehensive training program leading to Apple Teacher certifications and specialized technology leadership credentials.

“I personally can better my job and my instructions with my students. Thank you, DepEd and thank you, President,” a laptop recipient, Myleen Boquiren of East Central Integrated School, said.

Marjorie Mendoza, a Values Education teacher, said the laptop would be a big help in accomplishing school-related tasks and paperwork. She said she previously relied on her personal laptop for these tasks.

“This is really very helpful. Thank you so much,” she said.

Under DepEd’s selection guidelines, priority will be given to schools and teachers that have yet to receive government-issued laptops, particularly those actively leading educational technology initiatives.

Schools will submit their lists of recipients through the Teacher Assignment for Laptop Allocation (TALA) system, a new application for device inventory and property management, the department said.

Suppliers have until March 2027 to complete deliveries to beneficiary schools nationwide. (PNA)