The National Banner Program Committees (NBPCs) and Other Priority Program Committees (OPPCs) of the Philippine Council for Agriculture and Fisheries (PCAF) formulated strategic options and solutions to pressing issues confronting the agency’s participatory processes and consultative mechanisms during a roundtable discussion on December 14 to 16, 2022, in Tagaytay City.

The roundtable discussion brought together NBPC and OPPC Chairpersons and active members to discuss the various aspects of inclusive governance in the agri-fishery sector. It also served as a venue to review the Fiscal Year 2022 performance of the various NBPC and OPPC Committees. 

Among the strategic options and solutions is to enhance transparency in government transactions through strengthened participatory processes. In participatory processes, stakeholders share ideas, opinions, and knowledge to reach a common agreement or decision and come up with sound policy recommendations or resolutions.

To strengthen the agency’s participatory processes, the NBPCs and OPPCs suggested their involvement during PCAF’s participatory monitoring and tracking activities.

 

The NBPCs and OPPCs also recommended their involvement as well as the Agricultural and Fishery Councils (AFCs) in the preparation of Budget Execution Documents for the Department’s Banner Programs and their participation during the Department’s year-end assessment planning activities. This is to ensure that the Commodity Industry Roadmaps (CIRs) strategic plan and budgets are included in the annual Work and Financial Plan (WFP) of the concerned Banner Programs.

These suggestions are in line with the near-term agenda of PCAF to strengthen participatory planning, monitoring, and assessment through intensifying the monitoring and evaluation of DA programs, activities, and projects. 

The increased and improved conduct of policy research, the institutionalization of participatory agenda setting, and the creation of an Enterprise Resource Platform (ERP) for information dissemination and monitoring and evaluation were also recommended to improve PCAF’s action-oriented service delivery. 

The NBPCs and OPPCs also sought to revitalize the role of PCAF’s consultative bodies in shaping national and local agri-fishery development policy through more access to and in-depth assessment and discussions of proposed agri-fishery legislations to better consolidate the positions of concerned stakeholders.  | SMA