The National Food Authority is set to implement in 2018 a standard Terms of Reference for its contracted services such as security, trucking, hauling and warehouse handling, among others.
“The standardization of TORs for service contracts will realize a true, transparent and competitive bidding in NFA services. It is one of my priority reform measures since I assumed stewardship of the agency,” NFA administrator Jason L. Y. Aquino said.
A standard TOR for security services was recently finalized and will be implemented starting this month in all the agency’s offices nationwide.
During his first few days as head of NFA, Aquino noted that contracts, memoranda of agreement and memoranda of understanding entered into by NFA’s central and field offices varied in form and content, even if they were compliant with pertinent provisions of the law.
For example, every contract is covered by TOR, but TORs for similar contracts varied in the various offices of the agency.
In a memorandum dated Jan. 23, 2017, or 12 days after he assumed office on Jan. 11, Aquino required all NFA central office department and regional managers to submit to the agency’s Legal Affairs Department all copies of contracts entered into in 2016 and earlier, and hold the signing and execution of new contracts and agreements.
The objective was to review and standardize all NFA contracts across its 15 regional and 89 provincial offices nationwide.
The administrator created a team to look into the existing contracts and draft a uniform or standardized format and TOR for specific agreements such as services, supplies, and linkages with other government agencies, the private sector and local government units.