ZEP2030 conducts 6th General Assembly

The Zero Extreme Poverty Philippines 2030 (ZEP2030) movement conducted a series of activities for its 6th General Assembly in November. To kick-off, ZEP2030 hosted the first of the four learning sessions, Mandanas Ruling: Strengthening CSO Engagement in Development, last November 10, 2021. The session discussed the full devolution process and highlighted the roles of CSOs in the implementation of the Mandanas Ruling. Resource speakers from different sectors were invited to present the implications to local development and the importance of CSO engagement to make the full devolution process more participatory, transparent, and accountable.

Alfonso Maralli, Jr., Assistant Director of the Bureau of Local Government Development at the Department of the Local and Interior Government, introduced the Mandanas Ruling - how it came to be and what the effects would be on the national and local governments. With the planned allocation of resources towards local government units, he noted that this would be a great opportunity for CSOs to engage with and leverage government support.

Hon. Roland Boie Evardone, Mayor of the Municipality of Arteche, Eastern Samar, shared the local government unit’s experience in crafting the Devolution Transition Plan (DTP). He cited the formation of the Barangay Devolution Transition Committee and the Devolution Transition Plan Secretariat to ensure that all necessary activities will be implemented according to the timeline.

Marcia Czarina Medina-Guce, Consultant to UNDP Philippines, and Aurelio Salgados, Jr., Executive Director of PROCESS Bohol, further reiterated the value of CSO engagement in the devolution process. Medina-Guce underlined the possible increase of community-based accessibility and capability to steer the conversation as well as the resources towards locally designed interventions. On the other hand, Salgados stressed the need for CSOs to be involved in the crafting and monitoring process of the DTPs to ensure initiatives are carried out accordingly.

The learning session was organized by ZEP2030 Lead Convenors - Caucus of Development NGO Networks and PhilDHRRA. More than 110 participants attended the session on Zoom and Facebook.