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Philippines

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, Public Participation, Publication of Budget/Fiscal Information, Right to Information

IRM Review

IRM Report: Pending IRM Review

Starred: Pending IRM Review

Early Results: Pending IRM Review

Design i

Verifiable: Pending IRM Review

Relevant to OGP Values: Pending IRM Review

Potential Impact: Pending IRM Review

Implementation i

Completion: Pending IRM Review

Description

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

  1. Citizen Participation in Local Government

    PH0056, 2019, Capacity Building

  2. Participation in Local Tourism Development

    PH0057, 2019, Capacity Building

  3. Basic Education Inputs Program

    PH0058, 2019, Capacity Building

  4. Open Data Portal

    PH0059, 2019, Access to Information

  5. Participatory Monitoring of Infrastructure Projects

    PH0060, 2019, Capacity Building

  6. Implement EITI

    PH0061, 2019, Access to Information

  7. Passage of Freedom of Information Law

    PH0062, 2019, Access to Information

  8. Labor Inclusivity and Dispute Resolution

    PH0063, 2019, Access to Justice

  9. Participatory Children's Health and Nutrition Program

    PH0064, 2019, Gender

  10. Indigenous Representation in Local Legislative Councils

    PH0065, 2019, E-Government

  11. Open Contracting Data Publication

    PH0066, 2019, Access to Information

  12. Civil Society Participation to Improve LGU Service Delivery

    PH0042, 2017, Access to Information

  13. Engage Communities in the Fight Against Corruption, Criminality and Illegal Drugs

    PH0043, 2017, Capacity Building

  14. Ease of Doing Business:Competitiveness

    PH0044, 2017, Legislation & Regulation

  15. Ease of Doing Business: Philippines’ Anti-Red Tape Challenge)

    PH0045, 2017, Capacity Building

  16. Citizen Participatory Audit)

    PH0046, 2017, Anti-Corruption

  17. 8888 Citizens’ Complaint Center

    PH0047, 2017, Public Participation

  18. Government Feedback Mechanism

    PH0048, 2017, Capacity Building

  19. Access to Information Legislation

    PH0049, 2017, Access to Information

  20. e-Participation Through the National Government Portal

    PH0050, 2017, Access to Information

  21. Open Budget Index and Budget Reform Bill

    PH0051, 2017, Access to Information

  22. Philippine Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative

    PH0052, 2017, Anti-Corruption

  23. Institutional Mechanisms for Disaster Response

    PH0053, 2017, Access to Information

  24. Shelter Development for Informal Settler Families

    PH0054, 2017, Access to Information

  25. Open Local Legislative Processes

    PH0055, 2017, E-Government

  26. Law on ATI

    PH0029, 2015, Access to Information

  27. Transparency of Local Govs Plans and Budgets

    PH0030, 2015, Fiscal Openness

  28. Open Data

    PH0031, 2015, Access to Information

  29. Extractive Industries' Transparency

    PH0032, 2015, Anti-Corruption

  30. CSO Engagement in Public Audit

    PH0033, 2015, Anti-Corruption

  31. Civic Enagement in Local Budget Planning

    PH0034, 2015, Fiscal Openness

  32. Civic Enagement in Local Budget Planning – Community Capacity-Building

    PH0035, 2015, Capacity Building

  33. Improving Public Service Delivery

    PH0036, 2015, Public Participation

  34. Improving Local Govs' Performance

    PH0037, 2015, Capacity Building

  35. Improve the Ease of Doing Business

    PH0038, 2015, Private Sector

  36. Local Government Competitiveness

    PH0039, 2015, Access to Information

  37. Public and Private Sector Dialogue

    PH0040, 2015, Private Sector

  38. Improving Corporate Accountability

    PH0041, 2015, Private Sector

  39. Sustain Transparency in National Government Plans and Budgets

    PH0020, 2013, E-Government

  40. Support for the Passage of Legislations on Access to Information and Protection of Whistleblowers

    PH0021, 2013, Access to Information

  41. Engage Civil Society in Public Audit

    PH0022, 2013, Anti-Corruption

  42. Enhance Performance Benchmarks for Local Governance

    PH0023, 2013, Capacity Building

  43. Enhance the Government Procurement System

    PH0024, 2013, Anti-Corruption

  44. Strengthen Grassroots Participation in Local Planning and Budgeting

    PH0025, 2013, Fiscal Openness

  45. Provide More Accessible Government Data in a Single Portal and Open Format

    PH0026, 2013, Access to Information

  46. Starred commitment Initiate Fiscal Transparency in the Extractive Industry

    PH0027, 2013, Anti-Corruption

  47. Starred commitment Improve the Ease of Doing Business

    PH0028, 2013, Private Sector

  48. Disclose Executive Budgets

    PH0001, 2011, Fiscal Openness

  49. Access to Information Initiative

    PH0002, 2011, Access to Information

  50. Broader CSO Engagement

    PH0003, 2011, Public Participation

  51. Participatory Budget Roadmap

    PH0004, 2011, Fiscal Openness

  52. Local Poverty Reduction

    PH0005, 2011, Public Participation

  53. Empowerment Fund

    PH0006, 2011, Capacity Building

  54. Social Audit

    PH0007, 2011, Anti-Corruption

  55. Results-Based Performance

    PH0008, 2011, Capacity Building

  56. Performance-Based Budgeting

    PH0009, 2011, Capacity Building

  57. Citizen’S Charters

    PH0010, 2011, Capacity Building

  58. Internal Audit

    PH0011, 2011, Anti-Corruption

  59. Single Portal for Information

    PH0012, 2011, Access to Information

  60. Integrated Financial Management System

    PH0013, 2011, E-Government

  61. Electronic Bidding

    PH0014, 2011, Anti-Corruption

  62. Procurement Cards

    PH0015, 2011, Anti-Corruption

  63. Manpower Information System

    PH0016, 2011, E-Government

  64. Expand the National Household Targeting System (NHTS)

    PH0017, 2011, Public Participation

  65. e-TAILS

    PH0018, 2011, E-Government

  66. Budget Ng Bayan

    PH0019, 2011, Fiscal Openness

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