NINETEENTH CONGRESS 
) 
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES ) 
First Regular Session 
) 
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
Introduced by Representative Rufus B. Rodriguez 
House Bill No.  _____ 
EXPLANATORY NOTE 
This bill seeks to require the publication in two (2) national newspapers of general 
circulation within one (1) month after the signing of any foreign aid agreement. 
Foreign aid has been defined as the international transfer of public funds in the form 
of loans or loans and grant either directly from one government to another (bilateral 
assistance) or indirectly through the vehicle of multilateral assistance like the World Bank.  
The Philippines is a perennial recipient of foreign aid but even with such assistance, 
the country’s development is still lagging behind those of many other nations in Southeast 
Asia. This simply reflects the unrealized supposed benefits of foreign aid. Among the reasons 
for the dismal result include poor institutional development, corruption, inefficiencies and 
bureaucratic failures in the developing countries.  
Primarily, however, the lack of transparency in the disclosures of foreign aid granted 
to the country and the supposed beneficiary of the same is perceived as one of the main 
causes of the wastage in foreign aid. Even a NEDA study shows that the capacity of the 
Philippines to meet commitments based on the Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness by 2010 
is “disturbing.” The Paris Declaration is an international agreement endorsed by more than 
100 ministers, heads of agencies and other senior officials on March 2, 2005. It commits the 
signatories to increasing efforts in harmonization, alignment and management of foreign aid, 
including official development assistance (ODA), using a set of actions and indications that 
can be monitored. Of the nine indicators  mentioned in Paris Declaration, the Philippines has 
so far achieved  the 2010 target for only one indicator, that of coordinated capacity 
development.  
Considering the present allegations of misuse or non-use of foreign aid, it is high time 
that the government shows transparency in the utilization of foreign aid.  This bill, requiring 
publication of the foreign aid agreement upon its signing is a step in this direction.  
In view of the foregoing, approval of this bill is earnestly sought. 
 RUFUS B. RODRIGUEZ 
March 16, 2023
7:00 pm
7679


NINETEENTH CONGRESS 
) 
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES ) 
First Regular Session 
) 
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
Introduced by Representative Rufus B. Rodriguez 
House Bill No.  _____ 
AN ACT 
REQUIRING THE PUBLICATION OF ANY FOREIGN AID AGREEMENT WITHIN ONE 
MONTH AFTER THE SIGNING THEREOF IN TWO NATIONAL NEWSPAPERS OF 
GENERAL CIRCULATION  
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines in Congress 
assembled: 
SECTION 1. Any agreement on foreign aid, whether loan or loan and grant, shall be published 
within one (1) month after the signing thereof in two (2) national newspapers of general 
circulation. The publication shall include the agreement itself, the country or organization 
which is the source of the foreign aid, the amount involved, the beneficiaries thereof, the 
project or program covered, and the conditional ties attached thereto.  
SEC. 2. The Director General of the National Economic Development Authority (NEDA) shall 
be responsible for the publication mandated by this Act.  
SEC. 3. Any agreement on foreign aid which does not comply with the provisions of this Act 
shall be of no force and effect and shall not bind the government to the terms of the agreement 
nor shall be government be bound to pay the amount of the obligations covered therein.  
SEC. 4. Within sixty (60) days after the effectivity of this Act, the Director General of the NEDA 
shall issue rules and regulations that may be necessary to implement the provisions of this 
Act.  
SEC. 5. All laws, decrees, orders, rules and regulations, and other issuances, inconsistent 
with this Act are hereby repealed or amended accordingly.  
SEC. 6. This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after publication in the Official Gazette or 
in two (2) national newspapers of general circulation.  
Approved, 
7679