Finance Secretary Purisima Participates in Partnership for Growth Meeting in Bus

Finance Secretary Purisima Participates in Partnership for Growth Meeting in Busan

On November 30, 2011, the United States Government met for the first time with all four Partnership for Growth (PFG) partners in Busan, South Korea, where they were gathered for the Fourth High Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness. At the PFG meeting, the USG and the PFG partners, with Finance Secretary Cesar V. Purisima representing the Philippines, discussed ways to deliver meaningful results, ensure mutual accountability and empower country ownership. On December 1, 2011, Secretary Purisima also participated in a high level panel discussion on development cooperation and building more effective public-private partnerships at the private sector plenary session. PFG is a partnership between the United States and a select group of countries to accelerate and sustain broad-based economic growth by putting into practice the principles of President Obama’s Policy Directive on Global Development. The Philippines is one of only four PFG countries and the only one in Asia. The GPH-USG PFG Joint Country Action Plan is available on the internet.
USAID Deputy Administrator Launches Key PFG Initiatives

USAID Deputy Administrator Launches Key PFG Initiatives

Deputy Administrator (DA) Donald Steinberg visited the Philippines on May 3-5 to launch key initiatives under the U.S.-Philippines Partnership for Growth (PFG). On May 3, DA Steinberg, together with Mission Director Gloria Steele, launched the Cities Development Initiative in Batangas City. The initiative, which is an integral part of PFG, will unlock and maximize the city’s growth potential through significant collaboration in areas such as education, energy, environment, health systems, and economic growth and investment. On May 5, DA Steinberg signed three agreements with the Philippine government that will support programs in 2012 that promote inclusive growth under PFG, enhance delivery of health services, and improve local governance and stimulate community-driven development in Mindanao.
Asset Forfeiture Forum Debates the Need to Improve Legal Environment for Anticor

Asset Forfeiture Forum Debates the Need to Improve Legal Environment for Anticorruption Enforcement

Asset recovery is a challenge in the Philippines: legal processes take an average of twenty years; investigators grapple with insufficient tools to track the money trail; and responsibilities for asset management are not clearly delineated among various government agencies. Despite the difficulties, the Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG) together with the Office of the Ombudsman and the Office of the Solicitor General recovered over $2.2 billion of ill-gotten wealth since re-democratization in 1986. USAID, in partnership with the American Bar Association (ABA), provided technical assistance to the PCGG and other anticorruption agencies in assessing a sample of asset recovery cases to further bolster asset recovery efforts. On September 30, USAID and the ABA hosted an asset forfeiture forum to discuss the results of the study. The study highlighted the need to strengthen inter-agency coordination, improve reporting on progress of cases, tighten records management and evidence security, reduce court delay and update laws governing ill-gotten wealth. During the forum, Senator Teofisto Guingona III expressed his deep concern on the adverse impact of the weaknesses in the current legal framework for recovering proceeds of corruption, and stated his commitment to champion legislative reforms to address the issues.
USAID Strengthens Education Governance and Advocacy in Autonomous Region in Musl

USAID Strengthens Education Governance and Advocacy in Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM)

The conflict-affected ARMM region has the highest poverty and lowest literacy rates in the Philippines. One way USAID implements its education assistance strategy for children and youth in ARMM is through capacity-building training of mayors and local school boards. On June 15-17, 2011, USAID trained 175 local officials from 11 ARMM municipalities on education management and governance. A number of USAID-trained ARMM mayors have been conferred the Galing Pook (Excellent Local Area) Award by the Department of Interior and Local Government for innovative and pioneering work in local education governance.
USAID Supports Budget Tracking for More Transparent and Accountable Budget Proce

USAID Supports Budget Tracking for More Transparent and Accountable Budget Process

Only 40% of local governments comply with the compulsory Full Disclosure Policy directing all local governments to make public their financial documents. To help heighten the campaign for compliance, USAID supported a Conference on Budget Tracking for Transparent and Accountable Governance in Cebu City for about 50 local government and civil society representatives based in Mindanao. The conference focused on local government and civil society partnership to underscore the participation of civil society in local governance, relationship between the local and national government, local budget process, and compliance with the Full Disclosure Policy of the Department of the Interior and Local Government.