The Philippine Council for Agriculture and Fisheries (PCAF) conducted the fourth leg of its Areawide Participatory Planning Workshop on October 10-12, 2018 in Tagaytay City to review the Agricultural and Fishery Councils (AFCs) performances for the past two years, identify gaps and issues, and set strategies to improve processes.
The activity was also conducted to present the 2019 PCAF Plan and Budget based on the National Expenditure Program (NEP) and to generate inputs for the preparation of agency’s 2020 Plan and Budget Proposal and for the finalization of PCAF Strategic Plan.
It was attended by the Regional, Provincial, and selected Municipal AFCs Chairpersons and Coordinators from the Southern Luzon cluster (CALABARZON, MIMAROPA, and Bicol Region).
In his opening message, CALABARZON Regional Executive Director Arnel De Mesa, warmly welcomed the participants and hoped for the success of the said activity. He also clarified the issues surrounding the production of selected crops in the region for everyone’s information.
Furthermore, Partnership Development Division (PDD) Assistant Division Chief Soledad Bernardo and PDD Area Coordinators Ysrael Camacho and Charmine Joy Esta presented the previous two-year accomplishments per region in terms of the number of consultations/meetings conducted and policy resolutions endorsed.
The highlights of the Budget Reform Program were discussed by Budget Section Chief Jose Redentor Besenio. In his presentation, he highlighted that the program aims to fully execute the budget to deliver goods and services which promotes growth and reduces poverty. He also emphasized the shift of the program from obligation-based to cash-based appropriations.
Moreover, the PCAF FY 2019 Plan and Budget based on the NEP was presented by Planning, Monitoring, and Knowledge Management Division OIC-Assistant Division Chief Cleofas Ventic, where she discussed the targets of PCAF operating units to be pursued with the development partners in 2019.
Three creative planning workshops
The activity was composed of three creative workshops where participants were grouped by region.
The first workshop was called “Rich Picture.” This activity allowed the participants to illustrate the issues, gaps, and challenges that hamper the operations of the AFCs, and to determine the strategies needed in order to address the issues identified.
As an introduction to the next workshop, PMKMD Chief Estrella Tulay discussed the strategic framework crafted by the PCAF operating units.
The second workshop was the “Strategy Café.” The workshop aimed to determine new specific and smarter strategies to make AFCs more effective mechanisms for private sector participation in the development processes.
The third and last workshop activity was to plot their monthly schedule activities for 2019. The output of the activity will be uploaded to Google Calendar that is linked on PCAF’s website to avoid conflicting schedules and ensure accomplishment of physical and financial targets.
In his closing remarks, PCAF Deputy Executive Director John Pagaduan urged the participants to continue to work together as one collective unit in building a strong foundation for the country’s agriculture and fishery sector. – LC
