Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City
NINETEENTH CONGRES S
First Regular Session
HOUSE BiLL-No.  8904
:     fjAT
i      rmE;
Introduced by REPRESENTATIVE FRANCISCO PAOL0 P. ORTEGA V
EXPLANATORY NOTE
Since  2003,  the  Community-Driven  Development  (CDD)  approach  has  been
implemented and championed by the Kapit-bisig Laban sa Kahirapan - Comprehensive and
integrated Delivery of Social Services (KALAHI-CIDSS) Program of the Department of
Social Welfare and Development (DSWD).
The  CDD  approach  is  an  internationally  recognized empowerment  strategy  that
relies on community participation to achieve significant and lasting development. It treats
citizens  as  partners  in  the  development  process  by  allowing  community  members  to
identify  and  prioritize  community  issues  and  problems.  Further,  CDD  involves  the
community  in  the  implementation,  management,  and  operation  and  maintenance  of
community-identified  solutions  to  their  prioritized  problems.  Through  this  approach,
communities  are  empowered  to  take  part  and  claim  ownership  of the  govemment's
community-based programs, projects, and activities (PPAs).
By institutionalizing the CDD approach, we can give the people more power to chart
their   own   paths,   in   line   with   the   true   intent   and   spirit   of   devolution.   CDD
institutionalization  will  provide   an  enabling  policy  to  achieve  genuine  community
empowerment by enhancing capacities  for community participation  especially  in poor,
vulnerable, disadvantaged, and marginalized communities.
CDD' s principles of participation, transparency, and accountability has a positive
relationship with poverty alleviation and inclusive and sustainable growth.
Through the CDD approach, KALAHI-CIDSS and the DSWD improved access to
basic social services  in some of the poorest and most marginalized communities  in the
country. Through community participation, high-quality infrastructures were established
within or below planed costs. As an added benefit, CDD also improved the capabilities
of community members and volunteers as their involvement required training on sound
financial management and procurement.


By  institutionalizing  the  CDD  approach  to  ensure  inclusive  growth  and  social
protection,  the  government  can  build  on  and  perpetuate  the  gains  of CDD  in  local
development and nation- building.
For all the foregoing, the passage of this bill is earnestly sought.
fan:.y
PAOLO P. ORTHGA V
REP. FENC
First District, IJ


Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City
NINETEENTH CONGRES S
First Regular Session
HOusEBILLNO.    69n4
Introduced by REPRESENTATIVH FRANCISC0 PAOLO P. ORTEGA V
AN ACT
INSTITUTIONALIZING THE COMMUNITY-DRIVHN DEVELOPMENT
APPROACH AS A NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR INCLUSIVH GROWTH AND
SOCIAL PROTECTION AND APPROPRIATING FUNDS THEREFOR
Be it enacted by the Senate and House Of Representatives Of the Philippines in Congress
assembled:
SEC.   1.   Short  Title.  -This  Act  shall  be  known  as  the   "Co"mzt#zty-Drjve#
Development (CDD) Approach Institutionalization Act. "
SEC. 2. Declaration of policies. -It is the policy of the State to uplift the standard
of living and quality of life of the poor and provide them with sustained opportunities for
growth and development. The State also recognizes that the right of the people and their
organizations to effective and reasonable participation at all levels of social, political, and
economic  decision-making shall not be abridged.  The  State shall, by  law,  facilitate the
establishment of adequate consultation mechanisms.
Towards this  end,  and  in pursuit of good  governance,  sustainable  and  inclusive
growth, and poverty reduction, the State shall enact programs that provide opportunities
for community members particularly the poor, vulnerable, and marginalized to effectively
participate in designing, planning, budgeting, implementing, monitoring, and evaluating
community programs, activities, and projects.
Further,   the   State   shall   provide   capability   building   opportunities   for   local
government units, civil society organizations, and communities to ensure the proper use of
the CDD approach in implementing local programs, projects, and activities.
SEC. 3. Definition of Terms. ~ As used in this Act:
(a) Basic  sectors  refer to  the  disadvantaged  sectors  of Philippine  society  including
farmer-peasants, fisherfolk, workers in the formal sector including migrant workers,
workers  in  the  informal  sector,  indigenous  peoples  and  cultural  communities,
women, persons with disability, senior citizens, victims of calamities and disasters,
youth and students, children, urban poor, and members of cooperatives;


(b) Community-based  programs  refer  to  programs,  activities,  or  projects  that  are
designed, plamed, organized and implemented locally by community members or
groups to address community-identified plans and needs;
(c) Community-driven development (CDD) refers to  an approach that gives  control
over  the  development  process,  decision-making,  and  resources  to  community
members  or groups  and treats people  as  assets  and partners  in the  development
process while building on their institutions and resources; and
(d) Community empowerment refers to a process of enabling groups to increase control
over the  factors  and  decisions  that  shape  their  lives,  including  their  assets  and
attributes, partners, networks, and voice.
SEC.   4.   Elements   of  CDD.   -  The   CDD   approach,   through  the  principles   of
participation, transparency, and accountability, has the following elements:
(a) Community focus wherein programs or projects put primacy on a group of people
living in a particular locality  or geographical  area such as  a barangay,  ancestral
domain, or specific subsets thereof, where interventions are implemented;
(b) Participatory  planning  wherein  the  process   directly   involves  the   community
members,   leaders,   and  other  stakeholders   in  diagnosing  local  problems   and
designing a course of action to resolve those problems, and aims to harmonize views
amongallofitsparticipantsandprovideopportunitiesfortheengagementespecially
of the marginalized groups;
(c) Community  control  of resources wherein the utilization and management of the
resources by the community members or groups are based on community- identified
plans and needs;
(d) Community-managed  implementation  wherein  the  execution,   monitoring,   and
contract   management   of   community-identified   projects   are   performed   by
community members or groups, with assistance from the local government units
(LGUs) and other local partners; and
(e) Participatory  monitoring   and   evaluation  wherein  the  process   through  which
members at various levels of the community engage in monitoring and evaluating a
program or policy, share control over the content, the process and the results of the
monitoring  and  evaluation  activity,  and  participate  in  identifying  and  making
corrective actions.
(I)  Operation and Maintenance, and Sustainability wherein the community participates
in the  operation  and maintenance  of the  community-identified project,  ensuring
sustainability not only of the project itself but also of the elements and principles of
the CDD approach.
SEC.  5.  Institutionalization of the CDD Approach. -National  goverrment agencies
(NGAs)  and  departments,   including  their  attached  agencies,   offices,  bureaus,   other
government   instrumentalities,   and   LGUs   shall   adopt   the   CDD   approach   in   their
community-based   programs   to   promote   participation   and   empowerment   of  poor,
vulnerable, disadvantaged, and marginalized groups within communities.
SEC. 6. Operationalization of the CDD Approach. -NGAs and LGUs in community-
based programs shall be responsible for:


(a) Developing  policies  for  enhancing  participatory  governance  practices,  tapping
community   organizations   particularly   the   basic   sectors,   and   responding   to
community needs ;
(b) Providing information on government intervention, technical assistance and support
to   partner   communities   for  more   effective   community-driven   planning   and
inplementation;
(c) Enabling community members to meaningfully participate in the whole process;
(d) Ensuring  that  community  members  are  prioritized,  to  the  extent  possible,   in
receiving employment opportunities brought about by proj ect implementation at the
communities;
(e) Ensuring that identified community priorities are sufficiently funded;
(f)  Ensuring participation of civil society organizations (CSOs) as partners
(g) in organizing and strengthening communities, and implementing community-based
PAPs; and
(h) Creating   a   Community-Driven   Development   team   that   shall   ensure    full
operationalization of the CDD approach within their respective agencies and LGUs.
SEC. 7. Role of civil Society Organizations and the Academe. -Accredited CSOs and
academic institutions are encouraged to participate in community activities,  specifically
by:
(a) Facilitating the community empowerment processes;
(b) Providing continuous capability building and technology transfer to
(c) LGUs and communities;
(d) Conducting  third  party  monitoring  and  evaluation  of  capability  building  and
empowerment of LGUs and communities; and
(e) Providing additional funding or collaborating with partners or donors to inplement
capacity building and empowerment of LGUs and communities.
For purposes of this section, the CDD community of practice refers to a community of
CDD practitioners composed of agencies, NGOs, academic and research institutions, and
individuals, that share the commitment and passion for CDD, and together strive to advance
its practice through regular and puaposive interaction.
SEC. 8. Incentives. - The exemplary use of the CDD approach by NGAs and LGUs
shall be considered as a significant criterion for the recognition given to LGUs such as the
Seal of Good Local Governance by the Department of the Interior and Local Goverrment
(DILG) and other similar awards and recognitions granted by NGAs.
SEC.  9.  Advisory  Council.  - An  Advisory  Council  on  CDD  Institutionalization  is
created to develop policies relative to the implementation of this Act.
The Advisory Council is composed of the following:
(a) Secretary of Social Welfare and Development, as chairperson;
(b) Secretary of the Interior and Local Government, as co-chairperson and;
(c) Representatives  from  the  National  Anti-Poverty  Commission  (NAPC),  National
Commission  on  Indigenous  Peoples  (NCIP),  National  Commission  on  Muslim
Filipinos  (NCMF),  National  Economic  and  Development  Authority  (NEDA),
Department of Budget and Management (DBM), Department of Agriculture (DA),
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Resources  (DENR),  Department  of  Health  (DOH),  Department  of  Education
(DepEd),   and   Department   of  Human   Settlements   and   Urban   Development
(DHSUD).
The representatives include the secretaries of the agencies as the officially designated
permanent members and designated undersecretaries as altemate representatives.
The Advisory Council shall have, as additional members, representatives of reputable
and accredited CDD non-government organizations (NGOs) which shall constitute not less
than one-fourth (1/4) of the members of the Advisory Council, and shall be appointed by
the  Advisory  Council to  serve  for three  (3) years  from  the  date  of their  appointment.
Thereafter,  the  representatives   shall  be  selected  from  and  appointed  by  the  CDD
community of practice.
Advisory councils at the regional levels are also established with the regional directors
of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) and DILG, as chairperson
and co-chairperson, respectively, and representatives from the regional offices of NAPC,
NEDA, DBM, DA, DAR, DENR, DOH, DepEd, DHSUD, and from accredited NGOs, as
members.
SEC.  10.  Functions  of Advisory  Council.  -The  Advisory  Council  shall  have  the
following functions :
(a) Meet regularly to promote coordination among agencies to enhance and promote
the use of the CDD approach;
(b)Fomulate   and   issue   relevant  policies   to   ensure   the   effective   and   efficient
implementation of CDD and its principles;
(c) Formulate  an  incentives  program  to  enhance  and  promote  the  use  of the  CDD
approach by NGAs and LGUs;
(d) Formulate  a  grievance  redress  mechanism  that  accepts  and resolves  complaints
pertaining to the implementation of this Act;
(e) Provide the monitoring and assessment report on the implementation of this Act,
post the  same  on the  DSWD  website,  and  submit an  armual  report to the  Joint
Congressional Oversight Committee; and
(f)  Recommend  to  the  President  of the  Philippines  measures  and  policies  for  the
responsive delivery of commitments under this Act and integration into the general
poverty reduction strategy of the National Government.
SEC. 11. Implementing Agencies. -
(a) DSWD as lead agency. - As lead agency for the implementation of this Act, the
DSWD   shall  serve  as  the  central  coordinating,   capability  building,  technical
assistance, and monitoring agency for this Act.
The DSWD, through a dedicated office, shall integrate in their regular operations the
following functions :
1)  Ensure effective compliance and implementation of this Act;
2)  Facilitate support to empower community members to participate in the
3)  local development processes and to strengthen community capabilities to engage
LGUs, NGAs, and other stakeholders to support community-identified priorities;


4)  Institutionalize capability building and leaming on CDD for NGAs, CSOs, private
sector institutions, and other partners;
5)  Lead the research, development, and inplementation of new and improved CDD
mechanisms to adapt to the ever-changing needs of communities;
6)  Accredit CSOs to become partners in the use of CDD approach; and
7)  Provide technical assistance and resource augmentation including but
8)  not limited to ensuring integration of municipal development plans into provincial
development plans.
(b)DILG  as  a  key  partner  in  capability  building.  -The  DILG  shall  support  the
capability  building  of LGUs  and  communities.  The  DILG  shall  also  ensure  the
horizontal and vertical alignment and linkages of barangay and city or municipal
development plans.
(c) NAPC as a key partner in mobilizing the basic sectors. - The NAPC shall be a key
partner agency in the development of policies and measures to ensure meaningful
representation   and   active   participation   of  the   basic   sectors   in   their   local
development.
(d) Support  from  relevant  government  agencies.  -All  relevant  bureaus,  offices,
agencies and instrumentalities of the government shall render the necessary support
to the implementation of this Act.
The various government agencies identified under this Act and the concerned LGUs
shall  implement  this  Act  using  the  whole-of-government  approach,  which  provides  a
logical  and  systematic  convergence  of efforts  of NGAs  and  LGUs  to  respond  to  the
identified community needs, issues, concerns, and priorities.
SEC.  12.  Regular Monitoring  and  Reporting.  - The  DSWD,  through the  Advisory
Council, shall conduct quarterly monitoring of the implementation of this Act and submit
an armual report of its status to the Office of the President and to the Joint Congressional
Oversight Committee.  The report must also be regularly posted on a dedicated DSWD
Website and updated for the public's information. A process assessment shall be conducted
by DSWD once every three years, the results of which shall be utilized to stimulate more
program lessons exchange, experience sharing, public dialogues, policy discussions and
generating inputs for program design works on CDD. Mechanisms for promoting third-
party monitoring and evaluation of this Act by NGOs and CSOs, together with community
members and LGUs, shall also be established.
SEC. 13 . Joint Congressional Oversight Committee. ~ A Joint Congressional Oversight
Committee, hereafter referred to as the Oversight Committee, is hereby constituted. The
Oversicht Committee shall set the overall framework to review the implementation of this
Act.  It  shall  also  determine  the  inherent  weaknesses  in  the  law  and  recommend  the
necessary remedial legislation or executive measures.
The Oversight Committee is composed of fourteen (14) members, with the chaixpersons
of the  Committee  on  Poverty  Alleviation  of the  House  of Representatives,  and  the
Committee  on  Social  Justice,  Welfare  and  Rural  Development  of the  Senate  as  co-
chairpersons; and six (6) members from each House, to be designated by the Speaker of
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The review of the implementation of this Act must include a systematic evaluation of
its  impact,  accomplishments  of  the  program,  and  performance  of  its  implementing
agencies.  The  Oversight  Committee  shall  conduct  the  review  every  three  (3)  years
reckoned from the effectivity of this Act, or whenever deemed necessary by a majority of
the members of the Oversight Committee.
SEC. 14. Appropriations. -The amount needed for the implementation of this Act shall
be charged to the current year's appropriations of the Department of Social Welfare and
Development.   Thereafter,   such   amount   as   may   be   necessary   for   the   continued
inplementation of this Act shall be included in the annual General Appropriations Act.
SEC.  15.  Implementing  Rules  and  Regulations.  -Within  six  (6)  months  from  the
effectivity  of  this  Act,  the  Secretary  of  Social  Welfare  and  Development  shall,  in
coordination with national government agency members of the Human Development and
Poverty  Reduction  Cluster,  with  the  participation  of the  league  of barangays,  cities,
municipalities,   and  provinces,   and  relevant  stakeholders,  promulgate  the  rules   and
regulations necessary for the effective implementation of this Act.
SEC.  16.  Separability  Clause.  -If any  provision  of this  Act  is  declared  invalid  or
unconstitutional,   the   other  provisions   not  affected  thereby   shall  remain  valid  and
subsisting.
SEC. 17. Repealing Clause. -All laws, decrees, executive orders, rules and regulations,
and other issuances or parts thereof inconsistent with or contrary to the provisions of this
Act are repealed, amended, or modified accordingly.
SEC.18. Effectivity. -This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its publication
in the Official Gazette or in a newspaper of general circulation.
Approved.