The League of Cities of the Philippines (LCP) is working closely with the Government Procurement Policy Board-Technical Support Office (GPPB-TSO) in its project entitled “Promoting Procurement Transparency and Efficiency to Achieve the United Nations Millennium Development Goals” or PROTECT MDGs. The project aims to achieve the MDG targets by promoting transparency and attaining efficiency through strengthening public procurement in ten (10) selected cities consisting of Vigan, Valenzuela, Roxas, Kabankalan, Iriga, Masbate, Oroquieta, Surigao. Butuan, and Tacurong.

The project is divided into four (4) phases—Initial Assessment, Capacity Building, Monitoring, and Final Assessment. The first phase entails a Focus Group Discussion (FGD) which will determine the level of compliance of the cities with regard to the provisions of Republic Act (RA) 9184 in order to come up with the initial assessment on the procurement capacity of the city by.

The second phase includes strategic interventions. Continuous trainings and capacity building activities will be held for 10 procurement personnel regarding RA 9184 and the Philippine Government Electronic Procurement System (PhilGEPS).

The third phase consists of the monitoring of the recommended interventions. This includes monitoring of PhilGEPS, observers’ diagnostic reports, and assistance through phone or mail.

Lastly, the fourth phase will involve another FGD in order to accomplish the final assessment of progress based on the indicators provided during the initial assessment and monitoring.

The PROTECT MDGs project, started with its Focus Group Discussion in Naga City last September 2009.

The project which runs from April 2009 to December 2010 is funded by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) through the Democratic Government Thematic Trust Fund. Program management is done by the LCP, while technical inputs are provided by the GPPB-TSO.