The Department of Education said it had secured partnerships with all provinces as part of efforts to accelerate classroom construction nationwide.
DepEd Undersecretary Filemon Ray Javier told the Senate basic education committee that agreements had also been completed with 87 percent of cities and 75 percent of identified municipalities.
The agency had mobilized Php 49.8 billion of its Php 67.9-billion school infrastructure allocation for 2026, targeting an initial 14,601 classrooms through several implementation channels.
Of the amount, Php 22.35 billion was assigned to local governments for 6,353 classrooms, while Php 20.85 billion was coursed through the Department of Public Works and Highways for 6,134 classrooms.
Another Php 3.5 billion was allocated for 1,622 learning continuity spaces, while Php 3 billion was set aside for 515 classrooms under projects involving civil society groups, nongovernment organizations and Last Mile Schools.
DepEd said 209 local governments were in different procurement stages. Notices to proceed had been issued in Biliran and Mountain Province, while Nueva Ecija and Ilocos Sur had issued resolutions to award contracts.
Sen. Bam Aquino asked the department to publish and submit a master list of beneficiary areas after some local officials said they had not received information about projects intended for their communities.
Aquino urged agencies to deliver classrooms faster, warning that delays and weak fund utilization could affect allocations in the 2027 budget as the country continued to face a shortage of more than 166,000 classrooms.