14 March 2012, Manila Bulletin
All efforts are being exerted to close the resource gaps in the education sector – teachers, classrooms, tables, chairs, textbooks and other school materials – by 2013. The government has vowed to eliminate the shortage of 66,800 classrooms nationwide. Some R10 billion was released to the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) for the construction, replacement, and completion of kindergarten, elementary, and secondary facilities in areas from acute classroom shortage.
Of the R10 billion, schools in National Capital Region will get R1.7 billion, followed by schools in Region IV-A with R1.2 billion, schools in Region VIII with R827.7 million, and schools in Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao with R683.8 million. The DPWH will administer the construction of facilities based on a list of recipient schools identified by the Department of Education (DepEd).
On December 23, 2012, the government released R8.8 billion to the DepEd for the construction of classrooms in 14 regions, as part of Phase II of the Public-Private Partnership for the School Infrastructure Project (PSIP II). PSIP II concerns the design and construction of 10,680 classrooms, including school furniture and comfort rooms. Recipients of PSIP Phase I project were Regions I, 3, and 4-A.
This year, the DepEd is building 17,939 classrooms with 90,461 new water, lavatory and sanitation facilities, through public-private partnership. It constructed 15,000 classrooms in 2011 and 35,000 in 2012. It is hiring 61,510 new teachers and 3,500 non-teaching personnel, including the over 7,000 teachers who volunteered for the kindergarten program that was started in school year 2012-2013.
We congratulate the Department of Education headed by Secretary Bro. Armin A. Luistro and the Department of Public Works and Highways led by Secretary Rogelio L. Singson, in their partnership to address problems in the education sector and in their focus on improving the quality of Philippine education. We wish them the best and success in all endeavors. CONGRATULATIONS AND MABUHAY!
08 October 2012, Business Mirror
by Estrella Torres
The Department of Education (DepEd) awarded on Monday to two winning bidders, that include a group of former chairman of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority Chairman Bayani Fernando, the project to build close to 10,000 classrooms under the public-private partnership program (PPP).
DepEd Secretary Armin Luistro said under the contract, the department will lease a total of 9,301 classrooms facilities for a period of 10 years that will cost the government P1.628 billion.
“The DepEd has secured a Multi-Year Obligational Authority from the Department of Budget and Management to cover its annual lease payments, amounting to P1.628 billion, for the next 10 years,” said Luistro in a statement on Monday.
The signing of the agreement will be the department’s flagship project under the Aquino administration’s Public Private Partnership for School Infrastructure Project (PSIP) to ease the lingering problems on shortage of classrooms for public elementary and high schools student nationwide.
Luistro and Fernando of BF Group of Companies signed the agreement in a ceremony held at the Bulwagan ng Karunungan at the DepEd head office in Ultra, Pasig.
Fernando was accompanied by his business partners, namely, Tala C. Fernando, BF Corp. president; Engr. Reynaldo de la Cruz, of BF Corp.-Riverbanks Development Corp. and Louie Ferrer of Citicore Investment Holdings.
The other winning bidder for the DepEd’s PPP project, Megawide Construction Corp. President Michael Cosiquien, also signed the agreement for the second part of the project. Cosiquien was accompanied by Megawide Construction Corp. chief executive Edgar Saavedra, Megawide Construction Corp. president, and Oliver Tan, Megawide Construction Corp. chief finance officer.
In Photo: The Department of Education signs an agreement with two winning firms that will construct close to 10,000 classrooms in a build-lease-transfer agreement under the first phase of the DepEd’s Public-Private Partnership for School Infrastructure Project. Tuesday’s affair was held at the DepEd Complex in Pasig City. It was attended by (from left) Reynaldo de la Cruz, Bright Future Educational Facilities Inc.; Bro. Armin A. Luistro, FSC, DepEd secretary; Oliver Tan, Megawide Construction Corp. CFO; Louie Ferrer, Citicore Investment Holdings-Megawide Construction Corp. president; Edgar Saavedra, Megawide Construction Corp. president; and Michael Consiquien, Megawide Construction Corp. CEO. (Ryan G. Ricafort)
