MALACAÑANG has issued the revised implementing rules and regulations (IRR) of the Social Reform and Poverty Alleviation Act, which seeks to address inequities in Philippine society through social interventions.
Addressing the National Anti-Poverty Council (NAPC) basic sectors’ national sectoral assemblies, President Aquino said he has signed the revised IRR of Republic Act 8425, or the Social Reform and Poverty Alleviation Act, to improve the system of representation in the NAPC among basic sectors.
Under Rule II of Administrative Order (AO) 21, the Philippine approach to social reform and poverty alleviation includes a multidimensional approach to poverty alleviation that incorporates the economic dimension (asset reform), socio-cultural dimension ecological dimension and governance dimension.
It said that asset reform would be obtained through sector-specific flagship programs for farmers and landless rural workers; fisherfolk; the urban poor; indigenous cultural communities; workers in the formal sector and migrant workers; workers in the informal sector; and disadvantaged groups.
To support the sectoral flagship programs, there would be cross-sectoral flagships such as institution-building and effective participation in governance; sustainable livelihood programs; expansion of micro-credit/microfinance services and capacity-building; and infrastructure buildup and development.
Under the revised IRR, the President will continue to chair the NAPC and will appoint the lead convener of the NAPC who will serve as head of the NAPC Secretariat and shall have the rank of secretary.
The NAPC will have a vice chairman from the government sector to be designated by the President, and another from the basic sectors, to be elected among the NAPC sectoral representatives.
The NAPC members include the heads of the Departments of Agrarian Reform, Agriculture, Labor, Budget, Social Welfare and Development, Health, Education, the Interior and Local Government, Environment, Finance, the National Economic and Development Authority, and the People’s Credit and Finance Corp.
The others are the Presidential Commission for the Urban Poor; the presidents of the League of Provinces; League of Cities; League of Municipalities; and Liga ng mga Barangay; and representatives from each of the basic sectors, among them, farmers and landless rural workers, artisanal fisherfolk and the urban poor.
The others represent indigenous cultural communities/indigenous peoples, workers in the formal sector and migrant workers, workers in the informal sector, women, youth and students, persons with disabilities, victims of disasters and calamities, senior citizens, nongovernmental organizations, children and cooperatives.
The 14 sectoral representatives will serve a term of three years without reappointment and will constitute themselves into a Sectoral Representatives Council (SRC).
The NAPC will coordinate with national government agencies (NGAs), local government units (LGUs), civil-society organizations and the private sector to ensure full implementation of all social reform and poverty-alleviation programs; and also coordinate with LGUs in crafting their respective social reform and poverty-alleviation programs.
It will recommend measures to ensure the implementation of commitments under the Social Reform Agenda; the meaningful representation and active participation of the basic sectors; and monitor and recommend measures for the effective formulation, implementation and evaluation of policies, programs and resource allocation, and management of social reform and poverty-alleviation programs.
The NAPC will also advocate for the mobilization of funds by the NGAs and LGUs to finance social reform and poverty-alleviation programs and capacity-building activities of the basic sectors; provide financial and nonfinancial incentives to LGUs with counterpart resources for the implementation of social reform and poverty-alleviation programs.
Under AO 21, an Executive Committee will be created to oversee the execution of the powers and functions of the NAPC.
The Executive Committee shall be chaired by the lead convener and composed of the vice chairs, a member from the government sector and another from the basic sectors.
