Guidelines for Shopping and Small Value Procurement out!

The GPPB has issued the guidelines for two (2) other alternative modes of procurement. Approved via Referendum on September 30, 2009, Resolution No. 09-2009, provides the guidelines for Shopping under Section 52.1 and Small Value Procurement under Section 53.9 all of the IRR. The guidelines prescribed in the Resolution is summarized below:

General Guidelines:

- decision to resort to Shopping or Small Value Procurement shall be reflected in the APP taking into consideration annual requirement of items to be procured, market factors and price fluctuations. Once decision is made, the procurement may be delegated to the support unit duly authorized by the BAC.

Procedural Guidelines:

- Preparation of Request for Quotation (RFQ)- indicating the specification of the items to be procured, quantity, ABC, other terms and conditions. The RFQ shall prescribe the manner of submission (sealed or open quotation), and the deadline. Information relating to evaluation and comparison of price quotation shall be kept confidential. RFQ shall be sent to at least three (3) suppliers, contractors or consultants of known qualification. If mode of procurement is shopping under Section 52.1(a)[during unforeseen contingency], the RFQ shall be sent to only one (1) supplier.

- Posting - The RFQ shall be posted for seven (7) calendar days in the PhilGEPS website, PE's website and conspicuous place. Posting is not required during shopping when there is unforeseen contingency (Section 52.1(a); or when the ABC is worth P50,000 and below.

- Submission deadline - Duly accomplished RFQ shall be submitted before the deadline as specified by the BAC. However, said deadline may be extended if none or less than the required number of price quotations are received. In like manner, the extension shall be posted.

- Award of Contract - This shall be made to the lowest quotation (for goods and infra) or to the highest rated offer (consulting services) - upon determination of compliance to specification and other terms and conditions as specified in the RFQ. Award of Contract shall similarly be posted, except for those with ABC of P50,000 and below. The PE shall require relevant documents or resort to other means to determine that it is entering into contract with the technically, legally and financially capable supplier, contractor or consultant.

I trust, procuring entities will find procurement a lot easier and faster with this simplified quidelines.

Increased Thresholds for Contract by Administration and other Updates

The GPPB has recently issued two (2) Resolutions amending certain procurement guidelines, to wit:

A) Resolution No. 07-2009, amending the guidelines for Implementation of Infrastructure Projects by Administration (Annex I of the IRR). Specifically, the resolution increases the threshold amount of infrastructure projects that can be undertaken by Administration or "Force Account", to conform with the provisions of the 2009 General Appropriations Act (GAA) and the 2010 National Expenditure Program (NEP)pertaining to the DPWH budget. The revised thresholds are:

a.1) P20 M or less - to be undertaken by procuring entities without prior approval;

a.2) P20 M up to P50 M - prior authority shall be obtained from the DPWH Secretary;

a.3) More than P50 M - requires prior authority from the President.

A project costing more than P20 M may be undertaken by Administration subject to conditions as prescribed under Sec. 3.3 of Annex I.

B) Resoluton NO. 08-2009 - Guidelines for Lease of privately-owned Real Estate and Venue. The guidelines amends Resolution No. 019-2007 and includes the lease of "Venue" consistent with Sec. 53.10 under Negotiated Procurement of the Revised IRR.

Amendment to the Revised IRR

While the roll-out-training is underway nationwide, the GPPB has recently issued Resolution No. 2009-06 approving the amendments to certain provisions of the revised IRR of the GPRA.

Here's a summary of the Sections affected:

a) Section 22.3 - on the conduct of Pre-Bid Conference
b) Section 22.5.3 - on the posting of Supplemental Bid Bulletin
c) Section 24.5.2 - on the short listing of Prospective bidders for Consulting
d) Section 25.2(b)(i)- on the eligibility requirement for infrastructure project
e) Sections 27.2 and 39.2 - on the forms of bid and performance security
f) Section 32.2.1(b) - on arithmetical correction during bid evaluation
g) Section 53.7 - on negotiated procurement for highly technical consultants
h) Various sections of Annex G re: Design and Build for Infra projects

The said Resolution can be downloaded from the GPPB web site.

Errata in the recently issued PBDs.

The GPPB has posted in its website certain errata in the Philippine Bidding Documents (PBDs). BAC members, Secretariat and TWGs, please make the necessary correction on the one that you have downloaded. Click this link to view the errata.

Urgently needed: PBDs compliant with the Revised IRR!

It's been a month since the revised IRR on GPRA (RA 9184) took effect but procuring entities cannot fully comply with the revised provisions since the GPPB has not yet officially issued the revised Philippine Bidding Documents (PBD) that is consistent with the said revised IRR.

The Regional Composite Team has the same predicament as the roll-out of the Revised IRR has commenced for LGUs in Region VI. In fact two (2) batches consisting of four (4) schools have been completed as of this post. The participants would like to get hold of the revised PBDs when they go back to their respective stations.

In its website, the GPPB has posted a Notice that the working draft of the PBDs for Goods and Infra has been uploaded, and procuring entities are advised to carefully examine the working daft before using the same for its forthcoming biddings. Per its timetable, the final version of the PBD should be approved by the GPPB by end of September.

The working PBD drafts can be downloaded here: http://www.gppb.gov.ph/downloadables/default.asp.

Training sked for Revised IRR Rollout

The Regional Composite Trainors Team will conduct a series of three-day trainings on the Revised IRR of RA 9184 for BAC members, Secretariat, Technical Working Group and Accountants of LGUs in Region VI starting September 23rd and every week thereafter until October 21st.

Invitation letters have been sent out to target participants. Here's the schedule and groupings of the participants:

- Sept. 23-25 - - - Municipalities, Province of Iloilo
- Sept. 30 - Oct. 2 - - - Provinces and Cities
- Oct. 6-8 - - - - Municipalities, Province of Negros Occ.
- Oct. 14-16 - - - Municipalities, Province of Antique
- Oct. 19-21 - - - Municipalities, Provinces of Aklan, Capiz and Guimaras

Venue of the training is at Punta Villa Resort, Iloilo City. We encourage LGU-participants to send their confirmation to the Training Secretariat c/o Iloilo PBO Office, Provl. Capitol, Iloilo City or to the DBM Regional Office VI.

Revised IRR of RA 9184 takes effect today, Sept. 2

For the guidance of all government procurement practitioners, the Revised Implementing Rules and Regulations of RA 9184 (GPRA) takes effect today.

The Revised IRR was approved by the GPPB in a formal signing ceremony attended by World Bank representative on July 22nd, but the same was published in the Official Gazette later on August 3rd, and by operation of the law, its effectivity shall be 30 days later or September 2nd, today.

The preparatory Trainors' training sponsored by the GPPB-TSO for the Regional Composite Team Members (RCTM) starts today in Ortigas Center,Pasig Metro Manila. In Revion VI, the roll-out training for LGUs by the RCTM composed of accredited trainors coming from the DBM, DILG, COA and PHILLBO - shall be conducted starting the 3rd week of September.

Trainors' training on Revised IRR set.

The GPPB has scheduled the trainors' training on the Revised Implementing Rules and Regulations of the GPRA (RA 9184) on September 2-4, 2009. Venue is the Linden Suites, Ortigas, Pasig. Five (5) participants from the Regional Composite Team of each region have been invited to attend.

After the trainors' training, the roll-out of the revised IRR to LGUs throughout the country shall be conducted.

Revised IRR of RA 9184 finally signed

After several months of waiting, the Government Procurement Policy Board (GPPB) has finally signed on July 22nd, the Revised Implementing Rules and Regulation of RA 9184 or the Government Procurement Reform Act (GPRA).

Among those who witnessed the signing ceremony was World Bank Acting Country Director Maryse Gautier. The revised IRR which is contained in GPPB Resolution 03-2009, reduces the documentary requirements on bidder's eligibility; lessens transactions costs for bidders, and provides clearer rules on the scope and application of alternative modes of procurement, thus ensuring transparency and encouraging greater participation from a greater number of bidders.

Among the most notable features of the revised IRR which addresses the common dilemma of procuring entities in resorting to alternative modes of procurement, is to increase the thresholds or the maximum amount of ABC for Shopping and small value procurement.

The revised thresholds are:

1. Shopping during unforeseen contingency per Sec. 52.1(a)- P100,000 for NGAs, GOCCs, GFIs and SUCs. For LGUs, from P50,000 to P100,000 depending on their economic classification;

2. Shopping when the items are not available in the Procurement Service per Sec. 52.1(b) and Small Value Procurement (Negotiated Procurement) per Sec. 53.9 - P500,000 for NGAs, GOCCs, GFIs and SUCs. For LGUs, P50,000 to P500,000 depending on their economic classification.

The rest of the changes in the procurement rules per the revised IRR will be discussed in my next post.

Relevant changes to the IRR of RA 9184 (2nd draft)

This is a continuation of my post on February 3rd about the proposed changes/amendment to the Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) of RA 9184 or the GPRA.

After the completion of that series of consultation-workshops with procurement practitioners and other stakeholders, the GPPB-TSO came out with the second draft of the IRR and posted the same in the GPPB website for those who would like to download a copy.

Here are the additional changes:

Posting of procurement opportunities: Procuring entities shall also post the bidding documents at its website and at the PhilGEPS website from the time the Invitation to Bid is advertised. Prospective bidders may download the documents from the website and pay the corresponding fees upon submission of their bids.

Alternative Methods of Procurement: Another subsection was added in Section 48, thus: "the method of procurement to be used shall be as indicated in the approved APP. If the original mode of procurement in the APP was public bidding but cannot be ultimately pursued, The BAC through a resolution, shall justify and recommend the change in the mode of procurement to be approved by the Head of the Procuring Entity".

Shopping (Section 52): The maximum amount of goods that can be procured through shopping during unforeseen contingency has been increased from Php 50,000 to Php 100,000. On the other hand, the benchmark for shopping of ordinary or regular office supplies and equipment not available in the Procurement Service, has been increased from Php 250,000 to Php 500,000.

Negotiated Procurement (Section 53): The maximum amount that can be procured through negotiated procurement has been increased from Php 50,000 to Php 500,000. Another type of negotiated procurement is added that is, the procurement from specialized agencies of the United Nations but is limited to small quantities of off-the-shelf goods, primarily in the fields of education the and health; specialized products where the number of suppliers is limited such as vaccines or drugs.

Roll-out Training suspended

The GPPB has suspended the training on the roll-out of the new Procurement Manual for LGUs until such time that it has approved the revised Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) on RA 9184.

The GPPB expects to finally consider the IRR on or before June, 2009. In the meantime, requests by LGUs for training on procurement may be considered on a case-to-case basis, depending on the urgency.

Relevant changes in the IRR of GPRA

For the benefit of government procurement practitioners who have not yet downloaded a copy of the draft Revised Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) of the GPRA (RA 9184), and for those who did not have a chance to get invited to the GPPB-sponsored series of consultation workshops, here are some of the relevant changes to the IRR:

Coverage. The revised IRR now covers both domestically-funded and foreign-funded procurement activities whether wholly or partly. The previous rules (IRR-A) cover only domestically-funded projects. This means there will only be one IRR to cover all types of government procurement regardless of fund sources.

Scope and Application. A statement is included that “the loan negotiating panel of the government of the Philippines shall ensure that all foreign-funded procurement activities shall be through competitive bidding”.

Bid Envelopes. The two (2) envelope system will be implemented. From the previously required three (3) envelopes (Eligibility, Technical and Financial), prospective bidders will now have to submit the Technical and Financial envelopes, but that the eligibility requirements will now form part of the Technical envelope.

Eligibility Documents. The documents are still classified as Class "A" and Class "B". The Class "A" documents will still consist of Legal, Technical and Financial except that the number of documents to be submitted have been reduced from 11 to six (6). These are:

Legal - (a) DTI or SEC or CDA registration certificates whichever is appropriate under existing Philippine laws; (b) valid an current Mayor's permit issued by the city/municipality where the principal place of business of the bidder is located. The other documents required in the previous IRR-A like the TIN, Statement that the bidder is not blacklisted or barred from government bidding, GEPS certificate of registration, BIR Tax clearance, and other appropriate licenses will be submitted by the bidder within 30 calendar days from receipt of the BAC notice that it the lowest calculated responsive bidder. This is required prior to issuance of the Notice of Award.

Technical - Statement of the prospective bidder of all its ongoing and completed government and private contracts within the relevant period as provided in the Instructions to Bidders, including contracts awarded but not yet started, if any; and for Infra projects, a valid Philippine Contractors Accreditation Board (PCAB) license and registration for the type and cost of the contract to be bid.

Financial - (a) The prospective bidder’s audited financial statements, stamped “received” by the BIR; (b) the prospective bidder’s computation for its Net Financial Contracting Capacity (NFCC); and/or a credit line commitment (CLC) from a universal or commercial bank to be extended if awarded the contract to be bid in an amount not lower than that set by the procuring entity in the Bidding Documents, which shall be at least equal to ten percent (10%) of the Approved Budget for the Contract/Estimated Contract Cost to be bid. Please note that the cash deposit certificate which used to be among the financial documents that a bidder can offer is done away with.

Class "B" Documents - There used to be two (2) required documents, namely: Valid Joint Agreement (JVA), and letter authorizing the BAC or authorized representives to verify all documents submitted. The latter is now part of the Technical envelope. If the bidder is a joint venture, it is required to submit a valid Joint Venture Agreement (JVA), or in the absence of a JVA, written statements from all the potential joint venture partners stating that they will enter into and abide by the provisions of the JVA in the instance that the Bid is successful shall be included in the Bid. Failure to enter into a joint venture in the event of a contract award shall be ground for the forfeiture of the bid security. Each member of the joint venture shall submit the legal eligibility documents. Following the principle of collective compliance, the submission of technical and financial eligibility documents by any of the joint venture partners is allowed.

More of these changes on my next post.

IRR-A of GPRA up for revision

The GPPB has scheduled a series of consultation workshops on the proposed amendments to the Implementing Rules and Regulations of R.A. 9184. Twelve LGUs per region (3 provinces, 4 cities and 4 municipalities) have been invited. Schedule of the consultation is as follows:

February 3-4 in Manila for Regions IV-A, IV-B and NCR
February 5-7 in Baguio City for Regions I, II, III and CAR
February 17-19 in Cebu City for Regions VI, VII, VIII and IX
February 19-21 in Davao City for Regions X, XI, XII and XIII

For Region VI, the LGUs invited to the consultation are: provinces of Capiz, Iloilo and Negros Occidental, cities of Bacolod, Ilolo, Passi and San Carlos; and municipalities of Anilao, and Duenas in Iloilo, Kalibo, Aklan and Tobias Fornier, Antique.

The proposed amendment to the IRR can be downloaded from the GPPB web site.