(NAR) VOL. 7 NO. 2 / APRIL-JUNE 1996; 92 OG No. 26, 3962 ( June 24, 1996)
WHEREAS, Articles X, Section 14 of the Constitution
provides that the President shall create regional development councils
(RDCs) and other similar bodies composed of local government officials,
regional heads of departments and other government offices and
representatives from non-governmental organizations within the regions;
WHEREAS,
the purposes for the creation of the RDCs are administrative
decentralization to strengthen the autonomy of the local government
units therein and to accelerate the socio-economic development of the
regions;
WHEREAS, it is the policy of the State that
socio-economic development programs and activities of government be
undertaken with the extensive and active participation and support from,
and coordination of, various government agencies, as well as private
sector institutions at the national, regional and local levels;
WHEREAS,
there is a need to provide for a responsive forum at the regions for
the meaningful participation and support from the concerned members of
the House of Representatives;
WHEREAS, there is a need to
reorganize and strengthen the RDCs to make them more effective
institutions in the regions responsible for ensuring sustainable,
participatory and equitable development;
NOW, THEREFORE, I, FIDEL
V. RAMOS, President of the Philippines, by the powers vested in me by
law, do hereby repeal EO 308 s. 1987, as amended, and order to wit :
SECTION 1.
Regular Members. — The following shall be the regular RDC members:
a. all provincial governors;
b. all city mayors;
c. mayors of municipalities designated as provincial capitals;
d. all presidents of the provincial league of mayors;
e. the mayors of the municipality designated as the regional center;
f.
the regional directors of agencies represented in the National Economic
and Development Authority Board (NEDA, DAR, DA, DBM, DENR, DOF, DFA,
DOH, DILG, DOLE, DPWH, DOST, DTI, DOTC, BSP) and the regional directors
of DECS, DSWD, and DOT; provided that each agency shall be represented
by only one regional director; and
g. private sector representatives (PSRs) who shall comprise one-fourth of the members of the fully-constituted council.
SECTION 2.
Selection of PSRs.
— The selection of private sector representatives to the RDC shall be
done in accordance with the guidelines approved by the NEDA Board.
SECTION 3.
Special Members.
— The RDC, subject to the concurrence of majority of its regular
members, may designate special non-voting members of the Council.
SECTION 4.
Functions of the RDC. — The RDC shall have the following functions:
a.
Coordinate the preparation, implementation, monitoring and evaluation
of short and long-term regional development plans and investment
programs, regional physical framework plan and special development
plans, including the formulation of policy recommendations;
b.
Integrate approved development plans of provinces and cities, line
agencies, state universities and colleges, government owned and
controlled corporations and special development authorities in the
region into the regional development plan;
c. Review, prioritize,
and endorse to the national government the annual and multi-year
sectoral investment programs of the region for funding and
implementation;
d. Review and endorse to the national government
the annual budgets of agency regional offices, state colleges and
universities and special development authorities;
e. Promote and
direct the inflow and allocation of private investments in the region to
support regional development objectives, policies and strategies;
f. Review and endorse national plans, programs and projects proposed for implementation in the regions;
g.
As required by the Investment Coordinating Committee (ICC), review and
endorse projects of national government agencies that have impact on the
region and projects of LGUs in the region requiring national government
financial exposure which may come in the form of guarantees, national
government budget appropriations or subsidies, among others;
h.
Initiate and coordinate the development, funding and implementation of
regional and special development projects such as those involving
several agencies or LGUs;
i. Coordinate the monitoring and
evaluation of development projects undertaken by government agencies,
local government units, state colleges and universities,
government-owned and/or — controlled corporations and special
development authorities in the region; and
j. Perform other
related functions and activities as may be necessary to promote and
sustain the socio-economic development of the regions.
SECTION 5.
RDC Officials.
— The RDC shall be jointly headed by a Chairman and Co-Chairman
appointed by the President. The NEDA Regional Director shall be the
ex-officio Vice-Chairman of the RDC. The NEDA Assistant Regional
Director shall be the Secretary of the RDC.
SECTION 6.
Executive Committee.
— The Council shall create an Executive Committee to act on matters
that require immediate attention for and on behalf of the RDC when it is
not in session. The Executive Committee shall comprise one-fourth of
the total membership of the fully-constituted Council, the membership to
be determined by the Council, provided that all sectoral committee
chairmen created under Section 7 of this Executive Order, shall
automatically become members of the Executive Committee. The Chairman,
Co-Chairman, Vice-Chairman and Secretary of the RDC shall also serve as
the officers of the Executive Committee.
SECTION 7.
Sectoral Committees.
— To assist the RDC in the performance of its functions, the Council
shall create sectoral committees to handle social, economic,
infrastructure, and development administration concerns whose
composition shall be determined by the Council. The sectoral committees
shall perform functions analogous to and supportive of the functions of
the Regional Development Council. They shall review and endorse matters
pertaining to their respective sectors to the RDC Executive Committee
and/or the RDC Full Council.
SECTION 8.
Advisory Committee.
— To further strengthen the coordinative and consultative mechanism in
the regions, there is hereby created an Advisory Committee to advise,
assist and support the Council in discharging its functions. It shall be
composed of the members of the House of Representatives representing
the provinces and districts of the region who shall signify their
intention to become members thereof in writing, and members of the
Council's Executive Committee.
The Chairman, Co-Chairman, Vice
Chairman and Secretary of the Council shall also serve as the officers
of the Advisory Committee.
The Committee may meet as often as necessary but not less than once a semester.
SECTION 9.
Affiliate Committees.
— The various committees and councils organized to carry out national
and agency programs are considered to be under the umbrella of the RDC.
Their role shall be to assist the RDC coordinate, monitor and evaluate
their respective specific concerns. In general, secretariat functions to
these bodies shall be provided by the lead agency that organized the
council/committee.
SECTION 10.
Meetings. — The RDC Full Council shall meet at least once every quarter. It may adopt its own rules on constituting quorum.
SECTION 11.
Appointment of Chairman/Co-Chairman.
— In line with the government's thrust on decentralization, the RDC
shall nominate at least two (2) local chief executives who are
ex-officio members and two (2) private sector representatives from whom
the President shall select and appoint the RDC Chairman and Co-Chairman,
provided, that if the Chairman is from the government sector, the
Co-Chairman shall be selected from the private sector (and vice-versa).
Regional Directors of national government agencies in the region shall
not be included in the selection of nominees for Chairman and
Co-Chairman.
SECTION 12.
Functions/Powers and Responsibilities of the Chairman/Co-Chairman. — The Chairman/Co-Chairman shall have the following functions, powers and responsibilities:
a. Preside over the meetings of the Council;
b. Direct members of the Council, affiliate committees and regional line agencies to perform tasks the RDC may deem necessary;
c. Accept, in behalf of the Council, donations, contributions, grants, bequests or gifts;
d. Represent the region in Cabinet meetings and other activities at the national level;
e.
Submit to the President through the NEDA Board regional plans, regional
investment programs, annual development reports and other documents on
the region as approved by the Council; and
f. Perform other functions and duties as may be directed by the President.
SECTION 13.
RDC Secretariat.
— The NEDA Regional Office shall be the Secretariat of the RDC. The
NEDA Regional Director shall manage the technical, administrative and
financial operations of the RDC and shall be accountable for the funds
and properties of the RDC.
SECTION 14.
Term of Office. —
The RDC Chairman, Co-Chairman and private sector representatives shall
serve in the Council for a fixed term of three years coinciding with the
regular term of local elective officials.
SECTION 15.
Funding.
— Funds necessary for RDC operations, project monitoring and
evaluation, and implementation of special projects shall be included in
the annual general appropriations bill submitted to Congress, subject to
the usual auditing rules and regulations.
SECTION 16.
Non-Applicability. — This Executive Order shall not apply to the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao and the Cordillera Administrative Region.
SECTION 17.
Implementing Rules.
— The NEDA Board is hereby directed to prepare and adopt detailed
guidelines to implement the specific provisions of this Executive Order.
SECTION 18.
Transitory Provision.
— The existing private sector representatives shall continue to serve
the Council until the expiry of their term. The selection of the new set
of private sector representatives shall then be guided by Section 2 of
this Executive Order.
SECTION 19.
Repealing Clause. — All previous issuances inconsistent with the provisions of this Executive Order are hereby repealed or modified accordingly.
SECTION 20.
Effectivity. — This Executive Order shall take effect immediately.
Adopted: 12 April 1996
(SGD.) FIDEL V. RAMOS
President of the Philippines
By the President:
(SGD.) RUBEN D. TORRES
Executive Secretary