The accreditation of curricular programs in the Philippines, particularly for state universities and colleges, is the main function of the Accrediting Agency of Chartered Colleges and Universities in the Philippines (AACCUP), Inc. Organized in 1987, though officially registered and recognized under the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on September 4, 1989, it is the youngest of the four (4) accrediting agencies in the country until late 2003. Under its charter, one of the functions, if not the main purpose of AACCUP, is "to develop a mechanism of, and conduct the evaluation of programs and institutions."