DepEd and LRA partner to digitize land titles for faster classroom construction in the Philippines

The Department of Education (DepEd) in the Philippines has partnered with the Land Registration Authority (LRA) to convert manual land titles into electronic titles. This change aims to speed up classroom construction by securing legal land titles. Education Secretary Sonny Angara and LRA Administrator Gerardo Panga Sirios signed the agreement on December 19, 2024. The upgrade is intended to eliminate bureaucratic delays that have hindered school building projects. Previously, land ownership issues were identified as a major barrier to constructing new classrooms. DepEd reported a nationwide shortage of over 165,000 classrooms.