Access to Information Legislation (PH0049)
Overview
At-a-Glance
Action Plan: Philippines 2017-2019 Action Plan (Updated)
Action Plan Cycle: 2017
Status: Inactive
Institutions
Lead Institution: Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO) Senate of the Philippines
Support Institution(s): House of Representatives, Senate of the Philippines, Presidential Legislative Liaison Office, Right to Know Right Now (R2KRN)
Policy Areas
Access to Information, Capacity Building, E-Government, Fiscal Openness, Legislation & Regulation, Legislative, Public Participation, Publication of Budget/Fiscal Information, Right to InformationDescription
What is the public problem that the commitment will address?: Section 7 of the 1987 Philippine Constitution emphasizes the right of the people to information on matters of public concern. However, 29 years since the first Freedom of Information (FOI) bill was filed, the Philippine Congress has yet to pass a legislation that promotes access to information.; What is the commitment?: Passage of a Freedom of Information Law; How will the commitment contribute to solve the public problem?: To have Congress pass legislation on access to information which will mandate the disclosure of government information, from all three branches to the general public. Passage of the FOI Law will ensure that government efforts on transparency will become the norm and will institutionalize disclosure of government-held information. Also, enacting an FOI law shall not only foster a culture of transparency but shall empower citizen to hold government accountable by monitoring the use of public funds and the delivery of public services.; Why is this commitment relevant to OGP values?: The passage of a Freedom of Information Law is crucial for Filipino citizens to exercise their right to access governmentheld information. It empowers citizen participation in demanding for transparency and accountability from the government. The Law will mandate all branches of the government to disclose all documents as well as the procedures for accessing these documents. Transparency- all government agencies shall be mandated to proactively access or provide access to information of public concern, unless such is proven to fall within limited and strictly construed exceptions. Accountability- all government agencies shall be made to comply with uniform standards on the disclosure of public information. Furthermore, enactment of an FOI law will empower citizen participation in holding governments accountable to its people.; Additional information: Here are some developments in the FOI program: • On June 2016, House Bill 334 entitled “An Act to Ensure Public Access to Official Records, Documents and any other Information of Public Concern was filed in the House of Representatives for the 17th Congress. • On July 2016, President Duterte signed Executive Order No. 2 entitled “Operationalizing in the Executive Branch the People’s Constitutional Right to Information and the State Policies of Full Public Disclosure and Transparency in the Public Service and Providing Guidelines Therefor”. • On October 2016, the Senate Committee on Public Information and Mass Media submitted Senate Bill 1208 or the People’s Freedom of Information Act which consolidates 14 bills filed by senators. It is now up for plenary debates in the Senate. • On November 25, 2016, 120 days after the publishing of EO No. 2, the PCOO, as directed by President Duterte, launched the FOI program and the eFOI portal (www.foi.gov.ph). • Memorandum Order No. 10 signed by the Executive Secretary mandates the PCOO as the lead implementing agency for the delivery of the EO No. 2. • The FOI Program under the Executive Branch is one of the commitments of PCOO in the Philippine Development Plan 2017-2022 under Chapter 5: Ensuring People-Centered, Clean, and Efficient Governance, Sub-sector Outcome 4: Citizenry fullyengaged and empowered, with the following commitments: o Submission of FOI Manuals to the Office of the Executive Secretary o Onboarding of NGAs and GOCCs in the eFOI portal (www.foi.gov.ph) o Completion and publishing of Agency Information Inventory • Under the 2017 Performance-Based Bonus Guidelines, publishing of the FOI Manuals of agencies is now one of the requirements for eligibility for the said bonus.
Commitments
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Citizen Participation in Local Government
PH0056, 2019, Capacity Building
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Participation in Local Tourism Development
PH0057, 2019, Capacity Building
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Basic Education Inputs Program
PH0058, 2019, Capacity Building
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Open Data Portal
PH0059, 2019, Access to Information
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Participatory Monitoring of Infrastructure Projects
PH0060, 2019, Capacity Building
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Implement EITI
PH0061, 2019, Access to Information
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Passage of Freedom of Information Law
PH0062, 2019, Access to Information
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Labor Inclusivity and Dispute Resolution
PH0063, 2019, Access to Justice
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Participatory Children's Health and Nutrition Program
PH0064, 2019, Gender
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Indigenous Representation in Local Legislative Councils
PH0065, 2019, E-Government
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Open Contracting Data Publication
PH0066, 2019, Access to Information
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Civil Society Participation to Improve LGU Service Delivery
PH0042, 2017, Access to Information
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Engage Communities in the Fight Against Corruption, Criminality and Illegal Drugs
PH0043, 2017, Capacity Building
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Ease of Doing Business:Competitiveness
PH0044, 2017, Legislation & Regulation
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Ease of Doing Business: Philippines’ Anti-Red Tape Challenge)
PH0045, 2017, Capacity Building
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Citizen Participatory Audit)
PH0046, 2017, Anti-Corruption
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8888 Citizens’ Complaint Center
PH0047, 2017, Public Participation
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Government Feedback Mechanism
PH0048, 2017, Capacity Building
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Access to Information Legislation
PH0049, 2017, Access to Information
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e-Participation Through the National Government Portal
PH0050, 2017, Access to Information
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Open Budget Index and Budget Reform Bill
PH0051, 2017, Access to Information
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Philippine Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative
PH0052, 2017, Anti-Corruption
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Institutional Mechanisms for Disaster Response
PH0053, 2017, Access to Information
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Shelter Development for Informal Settler Families
PH0054, 2017, Access to Information
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Open Local Legislative Processes
PH0055, 2017, E-Government
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Law on ATI
PH0029, 2015, Access to Information
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Transparency of Local Govs Plans and Budgets
PH0030, 2015, Fiscal Openness
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Open Data
PH0031, 2015, Access to Information
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Extractive Industries' Transparency
PH0032, 2015, Anti-Corruption
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CSO Engagement in Public Audit
PH0033, 2015, Social Accountability Measures & Feedback Loops
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Civic Enagement in Local Budget Planning
PH0034, 2015, Fiscal Openness
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Civic Enagement in Local Budget Planning – Community Capacity-Building
PH0035, 2015, Capacity Building
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Improving Public Service Delivery
PH0036, 2015, Public Participation
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Improving Local Govs' Performance
PH0037, 2015, Capacity Building
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Improve the Ease of Doing Business
PH0038, 2015, Private Sector
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Local Government Competitiveness
PH0039, 2015, Access to Information
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Public and Private Sector Dialogue
PH0040, 2015, Private Sector
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Improving Corporate Accountability
PH0041, 2015, Private Sector
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Sustain Transparency in National Government Plans and Budgets
PH0020, 2013, E-Government
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Support for the Passage of Legislations on Access to Information and Protection of Whistleblowers
PH0021, 2013, Access to Information
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Engage Civil Society in Public Audit
PH0022, 2013, Public Participation
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Enhance Performance Benchmarks for Local Governance
PH0023, 2013, Capacity Building
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Enhance the Government Procurement System
PH0024, 2013, Anti-Corruption
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Strengthen Grassroots Participation in Local Planning and Budgeting
PH0025, 2013, Fiscal Openness
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Provide More Accessible Government Data in a Single Portal and Open Format
PH0026, 2013, Access to Information
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Initiate Fiscal Transparency in the Extractive Industry
PH0027, 2013, Anti-Corruption
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Improve the Ease of Doing Business
PH0028, 2013, Private Sector
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Disclose Executive Budgets
PH0001, 2011, Fiscal Openness
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Access to Information Initiative
PH0002, 2011, Access to Information
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Broader CSO Engagement
PH0003, 2011, Public Participation
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Participatory Budget Roadmap
PH0004, 2011, Fiscal Openness
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Local Poverty Reduction
PH0005, 2011, Subnational
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Empowerment Fund
PH0006, 2011, Capacity Building
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Social Audit
PH0007, 2011, Public Participation
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Results-Based Performance
PH0008, 2011, Capacity Building
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Performance-Based Budgeting
PH0009, 2011, Capacity Building
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Citizen’S Charters
PH0010, 2011, Capacity Building
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Internal Audit
PH0011, 2011, Anti-Corruption
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Single Portal for Information
PH0012, 2011, Access to Information
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Integrated Financial Management System
PH0013, 2011, E-Government
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Electronic Bidding
PH0014, 2011, Anti-Corruption
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Procurement Cards
PH0015, 2011, Anti-Corruption
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Manpower Information System
PH0016, 2011, E-Government
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Expand the National Household Targeting System (NHTS)
PH0017, 2011, Public Participation
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e-TAILS
PH0018, 2011, E-Government
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Budget Ng Bayan
PH0019, 2011, Fiscal Openness