To: Undersecretaries
Assistant Secretaries
Bureau Directors
Directors of Services, Centers and Heads of Units
Regional Directors
Schools Division/City Superintendents
Heads, Public Elementary and Secondary Schools
All Others Concerned

1. In support to Basic Education Sector Reform Agenda (BESRA) implementation, DepED is collaborating with development partners to augment the School-Based Management (SBM) grant resources under the General Appropriations Act (GAA). One of such efforts resulted in the implementation of the Support to Philippine Basic Education Reform (SPHERE), an AusAid-assisted grant administered by the World Bank which will be implemented simultaneously with the CY 2008 SBM Grant funded under GAA.
2. The eligible beneficiaries of the SPHERE Grant for 2008 shall be the disadvantaged elementary schools with approved School Improvement Plans (SIPs) located in the 50 priority divisions in 17 regions (See Annex 1).
3. In determining the recipient schools, beneficiaries should not have been given the SBM Grants (GAA) for CY 2006 and 2007. Priority will be given to the elementary schools with approved SIPs which axe in the 5th and 6th class municipalities in the 50 priority divisions. However, if there are no 5th and 6th class municipalities within the divisions, the next level of priority will be given to schools situated in the 3rd and 4th class municipalities.
4. DepED Order No. 55, s. 2008 entitled “School-Based Management Grant FY 2007 Budget” (Annex 2) shall serve as the basis for the implementation of the Grant specifically the provisions applicable to Non- Implementing Units (non-IUs) stated in Items 6.3 (Eligible Activities/Expenditure Items), 7.3 (General Procedures to Avail of the Grant), 8.0 (Releases of Funds), 9.0 (Liquidation of SBM Grants), 10.0 (SBM Management and Coordination) except Items 10.3 (Program Support Funds),
   10.4 (on Independent Audit), and 11.0 (Procurement Process).
5. Each of the recipient school shall receive a grant amounting to Fifty Thousand Pesos (PhP50,000.00).
6. The release of funds is through fund transfer from the Central Office Special Account to the Division Office’s bank account.
7. The Division Offices are hereby instructed to issue the call for submission of and evaluate the proposals from candidate recipient schools; The List of Recipient Schools shall be submitted to the Planning and Programming Division (PPD), Office of Planning Service (OPS), DepED Central Office, on or before January 15, 2009 at e-mail address: rmasapo@yahoo.com or mw_bautista@yahoo.com
8. Immediate and wide dissemination of and compliance with this Order is directed.

Encls.: As stated
Reference: DepED Order: (No. 55, s. 2008) Allotment: 1—(D.O., 50-97)

To be indicated in the Perpetual Index under the following subjects:
FUNDS
PROCUREMENT
PROGRAMS
SCHOOLS

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