July 19, 2011
DAR ADMINISTRATIVE ORDER NO. 01-11
SUBJECT : Guidelines Governing Gender Equality in the Implementation of Agrarian Reform Laws and Mainstreaming Gender and Development in the
Department of Agrarian Reform
SECTION 1. Prefatory Statement. —
The following laws and issuances provide impetus in the mainstreaming of Gender and Development (GAD) in the entire bureaucracy of the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) and in ensuring gender equality in the agrarian reform areas which will contribute to a more fair and meaningful implementation of the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP).
1. UN Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), Article 14 of which requires the State parties to ensure that rural women participate in and benefit from rural development on the basis of equality with men, and to ensure their rights in matters such as participation in development planning, social security benefits, training and education, including functional literacy, the organization of economic cooperatives, access to agricultural credit and loans, and equality in land and agrarian reform.
2. Millennium Development Goal (MDG) No. 3 of the United Nations states that where gender gaps remain in women's access to and control of resources in economic opportunities, power relations and political representations, gender equality and empowerment of women must be promoted.
3. The 1987 Philippine Constitution and Republic Act (R.A.) No. 7192 recognizes the role of women in nation-building and ensures women and men as equal partners in development.
4. Indigenous People's Rights Act of 1997, Chapter V, Section 25 on basic services and needs to indigenous women, elderly, youth, children and differently-abled persons, while Section 26 thereof states that Women-ICC/IP women shall enjoy equal rights and opportunities with men as regards the social, economic, and political spheres of life.
5. Executive Order (E.O.) No. 273, dated 8 September 1995 entitled, "Approving and Adopting the Philippine Plan for Gender-Responsive Development, 1995 to 2025" mandates all government agencies to institutionalize GAD efforts by incorporating GAD concerns in the planning, programming, and budgeting process of the Department.
6. Framework Development Plan of Philippine Plan for Gender-Responsive Development (PPGD) guides the agencies in developing capacities for gender mainstreaming. The three (3) major thrusts identified by the present administration are: (i) promotion of economic empowerment of women, (ii) advancement and protection of women's rights, and (iii) promotion of gender-responsive governance. SCaTAc
7. Chapter X, Section 40 (5), of R.A. No. 6657 provides that all qualified women members of the agricultural labor force must be guaranteed and assured of equal rights and ownership of land, shares of farm produce, and representation in advisory decision-making bodies. DAR Memorandum Circular No. 5, Series of 2001 establishes the mechanism for setting up Women's Desks in the DAR, from the national down to the municipal levels.
8. Section 1 of R.A. No. 9700 (CARPER Law) declares that the "The State shall recognize and enforce, consistent with existing laws, the rights of rural women to own and control land, taking into consideration the substantive equality between men and women as qualified beneficiaries, to receive a just share of the fruits thereof, and to be represented in advisory or appropriate decision-making bodies. These rights shall be independent of their male relatives and of their civil status".
Moreover, Section 15 of R.A. No. 9700 states that "There shall be incorporated after 37 of Republic Act No. 6657, as amended, a new section to read as follows:
"Sec. 37-A. Equal Support Services for Rural Women. — Support services shall be extended equally to women and men agrarian reform beneficiaries.
The PARC shall ensure that these support services, as provided for in this Act, integrate the specific needs and well-being of women-farmer beneficiaries taking into account specific requirements of female family members of farmer-beneficiaries.
The PARC shall also ensure that rural women will be able to participate in all community activities. To this effect, rural women are entitled to self-organization in order to obtain equal access to economic opportunities and to have access to agricultural credit and loans, marketing facilities and technology, and other support services, and equal treatment in land reform and resettlement schemes.
The DAR shall establish and maintain a women's desk, which will be primarily responsible for formulating and implementing programs and activities related to the protection and promotion of women's rights, as well as providing an avenue where women can register their complaints and grievances principally related to their rural activities."
9. Section 2 of R.A. 9710 (An Act Providing for the Magna Carta of Women) states that "Recognizing that the economic, political and sociocultural realities affect women's current condition, the State affirms the role of women in nation building and ensures the substantive equality of women and men. It shall promote empowerment of women and pursue equal opportunities for women and men and ensure equal access to resources and to development results and outcome."
10. In accordance with the above-cited laws, the DAR adopts the gender and development (GAD) approach, taking into account gender equity concerns in all DAR and CARP policies, programs, administrative and financial activities, and organizational procedures. It is a strategy for making men and women's concerns an integral dimension of the design, implementation, monitoring, and evaluation of programs and policies in CARP implementation. Through this, men and women will benefit equally and the gender inequalities will be eliminated.
11. With this end in mind, the DAR formulated the GAD mainstreaming framework and strategic directions (2010-2014) on CARP implementation with the objective of integrating gender equality methods into policies, programs, and projects, as well as in the planning, monitoring, and evaluation processes and information management, harmonizing gender equality targets of the Department to attain a meaningful CARP implementation and as its contribution to the national goal of poverty reduction and sustainable rural development.
12. This Administrative Order (A.O.) is hereby promulgated to ensure that women and men have equal access to the benefits of the CARP and other agrarian laws, and with the end in view of providing the general direction and strategic thrusts on GAD in the Department as it is a cross-cutting concern in the implementation of the CARP and other agrarian laws.
SECTION 2. Statement of Objectives. — The objectives of this A.O. are, as follows: ECISAD
1. Strengthen and develop enabling mechanisms, programs, policies, systems, and procedures towards gender mainstreaming at the DAR and implementing a gender responsive CARP and application of agrarian laws;
2. Install a gender-responsive and gender-accountable monitoring and evaluation system on the Department's compliance with this A.O.; and
3. Identify, delineate, and institutionalize the roles, functions, and accountabilities at all the levels of GAD structures, as well as the mechanisms for systematic reporting and synchronization of activities.
SECTION 3. Definition of Terms. — For purposes of this A.O., the following terms are defined, as follows:
1. Common Law Relationship — refers to a man and a woman who are capacitated to marry each other, and live exclusively as husband and wife either without the benefit of marriage or under a void marriage.
2. Gender — refers to socially constructed rather than biologically determined roles of women and men as well as relationships between them in a given society at a specific time and space. They are usually unequal in terms of power, freedom, status, as well as access to and control over entitlements, resources, and assets.
3. Gender and Development (GAD) — refers to the development perspective and process that are participatory and empowering, equitable, sustainable, free from violence, respectful of human rights, and supportive of self-determination and the actualization of human potentials. It seeks to achieve gender equality as a fundamental value that should be reflected in development choices; seeks to transform society's social, economic, and political structures, and questions the validity of the gender roles ascribed to women and men; contends that women are active agents of development and not just passive recipients of development assistance; and stresses the need of women to organize themselves and participate in political processes to strengthen their legal rights.
4. Gender Gap — refers to the difference between women and men in the access to and control over resources.
5. Gender Issues — refer to the forms of gender discrimination that serve as constraints to sustainable development. Five (5) emerging gender issues with particular significance in agriculture and the rural development sector are:
a. Equal access to land, water resources, and to credit and other support services;
b. Gender differences in roles and activities;
c. Gender and agricultural extension and research;
d. Gender agricultural biodiversity and commercialization; and
e. Women's empowerment and equal access to decision-making.
6. Gender Mainstreaming — refers to the strategy of making the concerns and experiences of both women and men as an integral dimension of the design, implementation, monitoring, and evaluation of policies and programs in all political, economic, and societal spheres, so that women and men benefit equally and inequality is not perpetuated. It is the process of assessing the implications for women and men of any planned action, including legislation, policies, or programs in all areas and at all levels.
7. Gender Equality — refers to the principle asserting the equality of men and women and their right to enjoy equal conditions realizing their full human potentials to contribute to and benefit from the results of development, and with the State recognizing that all human beings are free and equal in dignity and rights. TDcAIH
8. Gender Equity — refers to the policies, instruments, programs, services, and actions that address the disadvantaged position of women in society by providing preferential treatment and affirmative action. Such temporary special measures aimed at accelerating de facto equality between men and women shall not be considered discriminatory but shall in no way entail as a consequence the maintenance of unequal or separate standards. These measures shall be discontinued when the objectives of equality of opportunity and treatment have been achieved.
9. GAD Focal Points — refer to persons (Senior/Core Staff) who monitor the implementation of the GAD Plan, maintain relationship and are able to network with Gender Focal Points in government and other relevant organizations, act as trainer on GAD advocacy, mobilize resources needed and provide technical assistance in the conduct of gender analytical planning and budgeting; keep the programs/projects connected with critical events that promote gender equality, and are able to expand the Department's gender equality resource base.
10. Legally Married Spouses — refers to those who are married in accordance with the Civil Code, Family Code, or the Code of Muslim Personal Laws as the case may be.
11. Rural Women — refer to women who are engaged directly or indirectly in farming and/or fishing as their source of livelihood, whether paid or unpaid, regular or seasonal, or in food preparation, managing the household, caring for the children, and other similar activities.
12. Small Farmers and Rural Workers — refer to those men and women who are engaged directly or indirectly in small farms and forest areas, or who are workers in commercial farms and plantations, whether paid or unpaid, regular or season-bound. These shall include, but are not limited to (a) small farmers who own or are still amortizing for lands with an area of not more than three (3) hectares, tenants, leaseholders, and stewards; and (b) rural workers who are either wage earners, self-employed, unpaid family workers directly and personally engaged in agriculture, small-scale mining, handicrafts, and other related farm and off-farm activities.
13. Substantive Equality — refers to the full and equal enjoyment of rights and freedoms contemplated under this R.A. No. 9710, and encompasses de jure and de facto equality as well as equality in outcomes.
14. Temporary Special Measures — refer to a variety of legislative, executive, administrative, and regulatory instruments, policies, and practices aimed at accelerating the de facto equality of women and men in specific areas.
15. Rural Women's Work — refers to the following: (a) direct tilling/farming, e.g., land preparation, planting, weeding, fertilizer application, harvesting, etc.; (b) reproductive work in the farms, e.g., food preparation for the farm workers; (c) indirect work for the farm, e.g., accessing of capital and farm equipment, hiring of labor, organizational participation; (d) reproductive work in the farming households, i.e., taking care of the children and other household chores; and (e) food subsistence work, e.g., vegetable and livestock raising, securing water and fuel.
SECTION 4. Framework on GAD Mainstreaming in DAR and in ARB Organizations. — The Framework on GAD Mainstreaming adopts the principles of CEDAW, The Magna Carta of Women, and relevant domestic and international principles on gender rights which are customized to the needs and operations of the DAR and its stakeholders as presented in Annex A of this A.O. Likewise, a procedure on how to operationalize the said framework should be provided to facilitate the implementation of GAD concerns by the field offices.
SECTION 5. Statement of Policies. — The following policies on specific components of agrarian reform implementation shall apply:
A. Land Tenure Improvement
A.1. Land Entitlements of Women and Men ARBs
1. Both spouses or common-law partners in a relationship who each possess the qualifications to be ARBs pursuant to Section 22 of R.A. No. 6657, as amended, shall have equal rights in the process of identification, screening, and selection of agrarian reform beneficiaries to be undertaken by the DAR under A.O. No. 7, Series of 2003 and A.O. No. 02, Series of 2009. The individual consideration of each spouse/party is for purposes of according them whatever vested rights they may have acquired over the subject land. In no case shall exclusion and subordination be made in the screening and selection of ARBs on account of gender or relationship status. HScAEC
2. With respect only to acts of administration or matters pertaining to the day-to-day management of the landholding, the decision of one spouse shall be binding upon the other in the event the other spouse is absent. A spouse shall be considered absent for purposes of this A.O. if he or she leaves the conjugal home without any intention of returning thereto. The spouse who has left the conjugal dwelling for a period of three (3) months or has failed within the same period to give any information as to his or her whereabouts shall be prima facie presumed to have no intention of returning to the conjugal dwelling. This rule, however, shall not apply to acts of ownership over the landholding.
3. In order to recognize the rights of farmer spouses, the names of both shall appear in the Emancipation Patent/Certificate of Land Ownership Award (EP/CLOA) and shall be preceded by the word "spouses". In the case of a common-law relationship, the names of both parties shall likewise appear in the EP/CLOA with the conjunctive word "and" between their names, conformably with Article 147 of the Family Code. The same rules shall apply in cases of married ARBs or ARBs in a common law relationship who are covered by a collective/co-ownership EP/CLOA and their names shall be annotated at the back of the said EP/CLOA.
4. For purposes of ARB profiling, both spouses or common-law partners shall be considered as one ARB subject to the provision on vested right in Section 5 A.1, paragraph 10 of this A.O.
5. In the case of spouses/common-law partners who are tenants in their own right in the same or in a separate landholding prior to the effectivity of R.A. No. 6657, and who were recognized as tenants by the landowner (LO), they may execute a joint leasehold contract or a separate leasehold contract, as the case may be.
6. In the case of spouses/common-law partners where only one of them has an established tenancy relationship and is recognized by the LO, the name of either spouse or common-law partner shall appear in the leasehold contract/provisional lease rental (PLR). For legally married spouses, the names of both shall appear in the leasehold contract/PLR and shall be preceded by the word "spouses". In the case of partners in a common-law relationship, the names of both partners shall appear in the leasehold contract/PLR with the conjunctive word "and" between their names. The said leasehold contract/PLR shall be signed by or thumb-marked by both spouses or partners.
7. Where both spouses/partners are tenants of the same landowner, either one of them can exercise the right of pre-emption and redemption, pursuant to the pertinent provisions of R.A. No. 3844.
8. Where the agricultural leasehold contract was executed jointly, pursuant to Section 4.A.5 of this A.O. the consent of both spouses/parties shall be necessary for a valid voluntary surrender of their tenurial rights on the landholding subject of agricultural leasehold, as provided in Section 8 (2) of R.A. No. 3844.
9. All rights and obligations of the ARB on the awarded land and the agricultural lessee under R.A. No. 6657 and R.A. No. 3844, respectively, shall be exercised mutually and shall be the joint responsibility of both spouses/partners.
10. The award limit for legally married spouses and for common-law partners is three (3) hectares. In case both spouses are individually qualified to be agrarian reform beneficiaries, each shall accordingly be entitled to a separate award which in no case shall exceed a maximum of three (3) hectares.
A.2. Land Transactions of Women and Men ARBs
Regardless of whether the EP/CLOA was registered in the names of both spouses/partners or was awarded to only one of them, where the award was made during the existence of their marriage or the period of their cohabitation, the consent of both spouses/partners shall be required for the validity of the following transactions:
a. Sale, transfer, or conveyance of lands under Section 27 of R.A. No. 6657, as amended, and other agrarian laws, where the consenting spouses/partners are the vendors or transferors;
b. Application for land use conversion pursuant to Section 65 of R.A. No. 6657, as amended, where the consenting spouses/partners are the applicants;
c. Contract of mortgage where the awarded land is used as collateral to secure a loan, where the consenting spouses/partners are the mortgagors; and
d. All other transactions involving a waiver of rights and the relinquishment of ownership or possession over lands awarded to ARBs.
B. Program Beneficiaries Development TEacSA
1. Support services shall be extended equally to men and women ARBs. The Presidential Agrarian Reform Council (PARC) shall therefore ensure that rural women will be able to participate in all community activities. Accordingly, rural women are entitled to self-organization in order to obtain equal access to economic opportunities and to have equal access to agricultural credit and loans, marketing facilities and technology, other support services, and equal treatment in land reform and settlement schemes.
Both spouses/parties shall be accorded equal rights and access in availing of support services as provided for in R.A. No. 6657, R.A. No. 9700, and other agrarian laws, without discrimination as to gender. It shall be the joint and mutual obligation and responsibility of both spouses/parties that the support services extended to them shall be exclusively and fully utilized for the intended purpose.
2. The right to join any cooperative or organization, the objective of which is to advance the common interest of farmer-beneficiaries, landowner-tillers, tenants, and farmworkers, shall be equally available to either spouse/partner. Their individual participation in, and contribution to, such cooperative or organization shall be recognized. If only one spouse/partner is a registered member of a cooperative or organization, the non-member spouse/partner shall be allowed to represent his or her spouse/partner in meetings or sessions of the cooperative or organization, provided, however, that there is a proper authorization from his/her registered member spouse/partner.
3. The DAR shall develop, and/or coordinate with other CARP Implementing Agencies' programs and projects to facilitate, rural women's access to (a) rural enterprise and livelihood activities, (b) credit, microfinance and other financial assistance, (c) market and investment linkages, (d) training programs, and (e) basic social services such as health, potable water, power, and alternative learning systems.
4. The DAR shall establish and maintain a women's desk, which will be primarily responsible for formulating and implementing programs and activities related to the protection and promotion of women's rights, as well as providing an avenue where women can register their complaints and grievances principally related to their rural activities.
C. Agrarian Justice Delivery
1. Equal access and opportunity shall be accorded to both spouses/partners in pursuing or defending a cause of action which arises from agrarian reform implementation, agrarian disputes, and other related matters before any administrative tribunal, quasi-judicial body, or court of law.
2. In cases of mediation/conciliation of agrarian disputes by the Barangay Agrarian Reform Committee (BARC) pursuant to Sections 47 and 53 of R.A. No. 6657, as amended, Section 19 of Executive Order (E.O.) No. 229, and the pertinent implementing guidelines, both spouses/partners shall be summoned and shall have the right to attend proceedings thereof. The absence of either of the spouses or partners shall not affect the proceedings, as long as one of the spouses or partners is present. The decision of one the spouses or partners who is present in the mediation/conciliation meeting shall be binding upon the other, provided that the absent spouse has authorized the other to represent him/her in the proceedings.
D. Gender Awareness Building and Advocacy
The DAR must create awareness of and emphasize the fact that the problems on gender inequality are not rooted on people's own personal inadequacies, but are rather caused by a social system of institutionalized patterns of discrimination and marginalization against women and girls.
Advocacy materials and activities must be gender-sensitive.
In addition, advocacy materials and seminars on the Magna Carta of Women under R.A. No. 9710 and the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), among others, shall be released and conducted.
E. Capacity and Capability Building
1. The DAR's human resource development activities shall enable and empower its bureaucracy and the ARB organizations to become gender-sensitive, committed and confident to speak up and promote gender mainstreaming.
2. Gender-sensitive training programs, seminars, forums, and workshops must regularly be undertaken. Gender and development should be considered another dimension of capability building interventions for both DAR personnel and ARBs. Trainers and program implementers should consciously and purposively incorporate GAD as a cross-cutting concern for all interventions. STcAIa
F. Networking, Linkaging and Alliance Building
1. The DAR shall continuously pursue the establishment of linkages and strategic partnerships with other gender advocates in governmental and non-governmental organizations, locally and from abroad.
2. Resource mobilization must be strengthened. This refers to a concerted action aimed at supporting the required resources of a program of plan. These resources may include productive, political resources, and time, which are always critical and scarce for women.
G. Fund Allocation and Logistic Support to GAD
The DAR shall ensure that the mandated annual GAD Budget, which is a minimum of five (5) percent of the total budget from the General Appropriations Act, should be made available for all gender-responsive programs, projects, and activities, both for DAR personnel and for ARBs.
H. Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation System
1. The DAR shall put emphasis in installing and operationalizing gender-responsive planning, monitoring, and evaluation systems and processes, and the development and utilization of gender-sensitive indicators (GSIs). The GSI, as a GM tool, shall provide information on where men and women in the DAR and in the ARB organizations are, how they are doing in terms of their condition and position in the household, organization, or community, and what the DAR needs to do considering the practical gender needs and strategic gender interest under the circumstances.
2. All monitoring data pertaining to ARBs and landowners shall be gender disaggregated and submitted to the National GAD Steering Committee on a regularly basis. The National GAD Steering Committee shall determine how often the monitoring data should be submitted.
I. Women's Representation and Participation
The DAR shall ensure that twenty percent (20%) of the DAR Committees and BARC membership are women, and shall further ensure that in no case shall the number of women therein be less than two (2). If there are not enough women available for these organizations, then special leadership trainings and capacity building shall be undertaken for women in order to ensure their effective participation in these bodies.
SECTION 6. Implementation, Reporting and Monitoring. — The DAR Planning Service, in close coordination with the National GAD Steering Committee shall ensure that all GAD-related plans and monitoring reports shall be integrated and harmonized with M.C. No. 17, Series of 2009 entitled "Guidelines in the Implementation of an Enhanced Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation (PME) System of DAR in Accordance with Republic Act No. 9700".
The National GAD Steering Committee shall exercise oversight functions in all GAD-related programs, projects, and activities of the Department. As such, it shall ensure the integration, implementation, monitoring, and reporting of GAD concerns in the policies, programs, and projects of the DAR.
The compliance with the specific provisions of this A.O. shall be the responsibility of the concerned DAR office across all the components of the program, i.e., land tenure improvement (LTI), support services (SS), agrarian justice delivery (AJD), finance and management, as well as policy and planning.
The reporting and monitoring of the implementation of and compliance with this A.O. shall be undertaken by the GAD National Steering Committee, through its Technical Working Group (TWG) and field focal points in coordination with the Planning Service and its organic structure/field units (i.e., Regional Planning Division and Provincial Monitoring and Evaluation Unit or PMEU) based on the following procedures:
A. The Provincial Monitoring and Evaluation Unit (PMEU)
The PMEU shall:
1. Coordinate with the Provincial GAD Focal Point in undertaking the following:
a) Accessing the necessary information from concerned DAR provincial units as inputs in accomplishing the CARP gender-disaggregated reporting forms (GAD Forms Nos. 1 and 2);
b) With the assistance of the concerned civil society organizations, undertake the identification, analysis, evaluation, and resolution of the issues and concerns related to the implementation of this A.O.; acIHDA
c) Prepare reports on the identified issues and concerns (GAD Form No. 3); and
d) Ensure that GAD plans are integrated in the over-all Provincial Annual Work and Financial Plan and that GAD Monitoring Forms Nos. 1, 2, and 3 are captured and reported in the DAR M and E System based on M.C. No. 17, Series of 2009.
2. Finalize and submit the abovementioned reports to the Regional Planning Division for reference and appropriate action, copy furnished the Provincial Focal Point. The said report must be duly signed by the Provincial Agrarian Reform Officer (PARO).
B. The Regional Planning Division
The Regional Planning Division shall:
1. Receive and record the reports submitted by the PMEU in the designated logbook and provide a copy to the Regional Focal Point;
2. Monitor the PMEU's compliance on the submission of reports;
3. Coordinate with the Regional GAD Focal Point with respect to the following:
a) Review, analyze, and validate the reports of the DAR Provincial Office (DARPO), and in case of incorrect/incomplete information, advise the DARPO concerned regarding the matter;
b) Resolve the issues and concerns submitted by the DARPO and inform the latter of the status of the same, and should the need arise, forward the unresolved issues and concerns to the GAD National Steering Committee for appropriate action; and
c) Ensure that consolidated regional GAD plans are integrated in the over-all Regional Annual Work and Financial Plan, and that the consolidated GAD Monitoring Forms Nos. 1, 2 and 3 are captured and reported in the DAR M and E System based on M.C. No. 17, Series of 2009. HSaEAD
4. Consolidate, finalize, and submit the reports duly signed by the Regional Director (RD) to the National GAD Steering Committee, copy furnished the Regional GAD Focal Point.
C. The Planning Service
The Planning Service shall:
1. Record the reports submitted by the Regional GAD Focal Points and provide a copy to the National GAD Steering Committee of a summary of the compliance reports;
2. Monitor the Regional Planning Divisions' compliance with the requirement on the submission of reports;
3. Coordinate with the National GAD Steering Committee in undertaking the following:
a) Review, evaluate, analyze, and validate the reports, including all emerging issues and concerns, and in case of incorrect/incomplete information, advise the concerned DAR Regional Office (DARRO) regarding the matter;
b) Monitor and report on the compliance of concerned DAR units in terms of resolving issues and concerns; and
c) Ensure that national GAD plans are integrated in the over-all DAR Annual Work and Financial Plan, and that consolidated GAD Forms Nos. 1, 2, and 3 are captured and reported in the DAR M and E System based on the M.C. No. 17, Series of 2009.
4. Consolidate and finalize the reports and ensure that the consolidated reports are integrated in the Department-wide accomplishment report, with a copy of the consolidated report to be submitted to the DAR Secretary for information and reference, as well as to the National GAD Steering Committee for submission to the Philippine Commission on Women (PCW), National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA), Department of Budget and Management (DBM), and other requesting government agencies;
5. Transmit the issues and concerns submitted by the Regional GAD Focal Points to the concerned DAR units for resolution;
6. Consolidate the issues and concerns submitted by the Regional Planning Divisions which were acted upon by the concerned DAR units, and prepare and submit a report on the unresolved issues and concerns to the National GAD Steering Committee for appropriate action; and
7. Present said consolidated reports to the National GAD Steering Committee during its regular or special meeting.
D. The Management Information Service (MIS)
The MIS shall establish an integrated and comprehensive database on GAD based on the data requirements of the DAR, its oversight agencies, and the Congressional Oversight Committee on Agrarian Reform and Rural Development (COCAR).
SECTION 7. Inter-Office GAD Committees at the National, Regional and Provincial Level. —
A. The DAR National GAD Steering Committee
The functions of the DAR National Steering Committee shall include the following:
a) Serve as the technical policy advisor on GAD concerns of the Department;
b) Ensure the operationalization of GAD policies and programs in the respective bureaus; aECTcA
c) Monitor and evaluate the implementation of the Philippine Plan for Gender and Development in the agrarian reform sector;
d) Liaise with NEDA and PCW on matters pertaining to R.A. No. 7192 and its implementing rules and regulations;
e) Conduct resource mobilization and accessing to support the implementation of GAD programs; and
f) Collaborate and work closely with existing employee organizations within the Department in advancing GAD issues and concerns.
The Committee members shall be appointed by the DAR Secretary. It will be chaired by an Undersecretary and vice-chaired by an Assistant Secretary and the Head Executive Assistant of the Office of the Secretary.
The Directors of the following offices shall be members of the Committee, to wit: Bureau of Land Acquisition and Distribution (BLAD), Bureau of Land Development (BLD), Bureau of Agrarian Reform Information and Education (BARIE), Bureau of Agrarian Reform Beneficiaries Development (BARBD), Special Concerns Staff, Public Affairs Staff, Planning Service, Policy and Strategic Research (PSRS), Management Information Service (MIS), Finance and Management Service (FIMAS), Administrative Service, Legal Service, Project Development and Management Staff (PDMS), and PARC Secretariat.
B. The DAR National GAD Technical Working Group
It shall be the duty and obligation of the DAR National GAD Technical Working Group (TWG) to:
a. Document, and prepare a report on, the regular and special meetings of the National GAD Steering Committee for reference;
b. Convene bi-monthly to assess and plan GAD programs and projects;
c. Develop and implement mechanisms which shall ensure the sustainability of GAD in CARP;
d. Establish coordinative mechanisms with DAR employees towards the resolution of GAD issues and concerns;
e. Inform the Chair of the Regional GAD Focal Point on the status of issues and concerns acted upon by the concerned DAR units;
f. Implement capability-building and leadership formation programs as well as undertake affirmative action measures to enable grassroots women leaders to effectively participate in the decision and policy-making bodies, including but not limited to the following bodies: PARC and its local counterparts like the Provincial Agrarian Reform Coordinating Committee (PARCCOM) and the Barangay Agrarian Reform Committee (BARC); and
g. Undertake and facilitate Women's Month activities pursuant to PCW directives.
The TWG shall be chaired by the Director of the Special Concerns Staff and co-chaired by the Director of Planning Service. Representatives of the following offices, preferably a Division Chief or someone at the same or equivalent level, shall be members of the TWG, to wit: MIS, Planning Service, PSRS, BARIE, BARBD, Finance Management and Administrative Office (FMAO), Admin Service, General Services Division, Personnel Division, FIMAS, Budget Division, Management Division, BLAD, BLD, Legal Service, and Public Affairs Staff.
The GAD National Secretariat of the GAD National Steering Committee and the TWG shall be composed of technical and administrative staff of the Special Concerns Staff. cDHCAE
C. Regional GAD Focal Point
The Regional GAD Focal Point shall:
a. Serve as the implementing mechanism of GAD programs and projects at the regional level;
b. Oversee the implementation, monitoring, and evaluation of GAD programs and projects in accordance with the provisions set in this A.O.;
c. Monitor and evaluate the implementation of the Philippine Plan for Gender and Development (PPGD) of the agrarian reform sector at the regional level;
d. Conduct resource mobilization and accessing to support the implementation of GAD programs; and
e. Collaborate and work closely with existing employee organizations within the Department in advancing GAD issues and concerns.
It shall be composed of the Regional Director as the Chairperson, the Assistant Regional Director for Administration as the Vice-Chairperson, and one representative each from all existing units of the Regional Office as members. The Secretariat shall consist of one (1) representative each from the Regional Planning Division and the Admin Division.
D. Provincial GAD Focal Point
It shall be the duty and obligation of the Provincial GAD Focal Point to:
a. Serve as the implementing mechanism of GAD programs and projects at the provincial level;
b. Oversee the implementation, monitoring, and evaluation of GAD programs and projects in accordance with the provisions set in this A.O;
c. Monitor and evaluate the implementation of the PPGD of the agrarian reform sector at the provincial level;
d. Conduct resource mobilization and accessing to support the implementation of GAD programs at the provincial level; and
e. Collaborate and work closely with existing employee organizations within the Department in advancing GAD issues and concerns.
The Provincial GAD Focal Point shall serve as the implementing mechanism of GAD programs and projects at the provincial level. It shall be composed of the PARO as the Chairperson, CARPO-Administration as the Vice-Chairperson, and one (1) representative each from all existing units of the Provincial Office as members. The Secretariat shall be composed of one (1) representative each from the PMEU and the Admin Division.
SECTION 8. Funding Source. — The DAR management, through the National GAD Steering Committee, shall ensure that the mandated five percent (5%) allocation from the annual budget of the Department pursuant to R.A. No. 7192 is fully allocated and utilized by the concerned DAR units for GAD-related activities in the following areas/concerns:
a. Review and formulation of policies, rules, and procedures in the implementation of CARP;
b. Development of GAD plans, programs, and projectSepars of the Department and program beneficiaries;
c. Evaluation and assessment of performance and monitoring of accomplishments on GAD;
d. Education, empowerment, capacity building, and social awareness of men and women's rights, privileges, and the corresponding duties and obligations as enshrined by statutes and the universal declaration of accredited domestic and international organizations; SEDIaH
e. Dissemination of information on GAD and related issuances;
f. Delivery of support services and agrarian justice; and
g. Other activities related to the advocacy of GAD.
For this purpose, the National GAD TWG, in coordination with the Planning Service, shall be primarily involved in the yearly preparation of the Department's annual budget for GAD, which shall be approved by the National GAD Steering Committee.
SECTION 9. Monitoring of GAD Budget. — The utilization and outcome of the GAD budget shall be annually monitored and evaluated in terms of its success in influencing the gender-responsive implementation of agrarian reform. A comprehensive GAD mainstreaming report and utilization of the GAD budget shall be presented to the PARC and the DAR Secretary at the end of the fiscal year.
SECTION 10. Gender Audit. — The Department shall conduct an annual gender audit with respect to the nature and extent of compliance of its various offices and units with this A.O.
SECTION 11. Separability Clause. — Any judicial pronouncement declaring as unconstitutional any provision of these A.O. shall have no effect on the validity of the other provisions not affected thereby.
SECTION 12. Repealing Clause. — All orders, circulars or issuances inconsistent herewith are hereby revoked, amended or modified accordingly.
SECTION 13. Effectivity. — This Order shall take effect immediately upon its publication in two (2) newspapers of general circulation.
Diliman, Quezon City, July 19, 2011. HIaTCc
(SGD.) VIRGILIO R. DE LOS REYES
Secretary
* Published in The Philippine Star and Philippine Daily Inquirer on July 25, 2011.
ANNEX A
GAD Mainstreaming Framework
The Framework serves as the roadmap that spells out the strategic directions in mainstreaming GAD in the entire DAR Bureaucracy and in agrarian reform beneficiaries' organizations (ARBOs). Gendered perspective is being introduced into all areas of development work in the Department and in its clientele — the ARBs.
Figure 1: Gender and Development Mainstreaming Framework: The Wheel of Gender Mainstreaming
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Figure 1 presents the framework of GAD mainstreaming in DAR-CARP. The imagery is likened to a wheel, signifying its dynamism and its forward movement. Gender mainstreaming efforts in the Department date back to 1986 when the main thrust of the government was Women in Development. Over time, it evolved into Gender and Development, and the DAR has consistently moved forward like a wheel until it is able to achieve its desired contribution to the national goal of poverty reduction and sustainable development where men and women in society have realized their full human rights and potentials — as represented by the star.
At the center of the wheel are the outcomes to be achieved in GAD Mainstreaming. First, the DAR will become a gender-accountable institution where gender equity is viewed as the key commitment of the organization. The DAR management should ensure that gender and development shall be an integral part of the DAR so that gender programs are not affected by changes in leadership.
Second, gender equitable and sustainable Agrarian Reform Areas (ARAs) and organizations will be established where there is equal opportunity, access, and control of CARP resources by male and female ARBs based on their differing needs, interests, and capacities, and where these ARBs will have an equitable share in the responsibilities of decision-making and will participate in the processes of CARP implementation as well as in the benefits derived therefrom.
The wheel has six (6) spooks. These represent the six (6) key areas where GAD shall be mainstreamed. This is being emphasized so that gender mainstreaming will make GAD an integral part of all of the DAR's activities. GAD is intended to be an integral part of the work of the DAR and should be interwoven in the entire operations of DAR-CARP.
The six (6) key areas for GAD mainstreaming are interrelated and interdependent with each other. This means that the level of performance in one key area has direct effects on the other areas. The six (6) key areas include:
a. Gender awareness building and advocacy;
b. Gender-responsive capability and capacity development;
c. Gender-responsive planning, monitoring, and evaluation system and information management;
d. Linkaging, networking, alliance building, and resource mobilization;
e. Fund allocation and logistic support; and
f. Policy review and program enhancements on the three (3) major components of CARP, i.e., Land Tenure Improvement (LTI), Program Beneficiaries Development (PBD), and Agrarian Justice Delivery (AJD).
As the wheel moves, it undergoes four (4) major interrelated phases which are moving in a spiral manner. Cutting across all these phases is continuous research, the same being an integral part in all gender mainstreaming activities. These phases include:
1. Conscientization and Advocacy
This phase focuses on building awareness and consciousness that development has different effects on male and female ARBs and DAR personnel. This is to raise awareness from a gender-blind perspective to being gender-aware, so that there is a recognition of gender inequality, that there are differences between men and women in terms of access and control over resources, including opportunities for development, and that women and men have different perceptions and interests. Advocacy and social marketing are crucial in this stage.
2. Capacity and Capability Building
In this phase, capacity and capability building are merged because of the thin line dividing the two. Capacity enables the organization to address gender issues and concerns, while capability building is intended to enable and empower the individual GAD champions, stakeholders, and staff of the DAR to have specific specializations through education and training that will facilitate attaining gender equity. Together, the capacities of the DAR bureaucracy and its people involved at all levels will make DAR a gender-accountable institution. IcSHTA
3. Operationalization
This phase refers to the actual implementation of gender mainstreaming after a series of trainings and assessments. It will require transparency, patience, and active participation of the leaders, officers, and staff of the DAR and ARB organizations to review all GAD documents, policies, programs, and projects.
4. Institutionalization
This is the ultimate phase that must be attained: the internalization of the gender and development perspective within the organization and the mandate of the organization, and with full support in terms of resource allocation.
Below is the general description and overview of each of the key areas of GAD mainstreaming in DAR-CARP.
Gender Awareness Building and Advocacy. — This is the basic and core area as this builds the foundation of gender mainstreaming efforts in the DAR bureaucracy and in ARB organizations.
1. Gender-Responsive Capability and Capacity Development. — This key mainstreaming area is also a gender mainstreaming phase by itself due to its connectivity and its being a "cross cutting" element in all key areas.
2. Gender-Responsive Planning, Monitoring, and Evaluation (PME) System and Information Management. — In this key area, the DAR shall put emphasis on installing and operationalizing a gender-responsive PME system and processes, and the development and utilization of gender-sensitive indicators. This is simply the purposive and conscious integration of the GAD framework into the entire PME system and process of DAR and in ARB organizations.
3. Linkaging, Networking, Alliance Building and Resource Mobilization. — This key area dwells on the process of establishing strategic partnership and enhancing resource mobilization efforts which cuts across all the other key areas of gender mainstreaming. Networking for gender mainstreaming includes the establishment of linkages and the formation of joint activities with other gender advocates in governmental and non-governmental organizations, locally and from abroad. On the other hand, resource mobilization refers to a concerted action aimed to support the required resources of a program or plan.
4. Fund Allocation and Logistic Support. One of the major requirements in gender mainstreaming is fund availability. In this key area, the DAR shall ensure that the mandated annual GAD Budget, which is a minimum of five per cent (5%) of the total budget from the General Appropriations Act, is made available for all gender-responsive programs, projects, and activities for both DAR personnel and ARBs.
Likewise, the DAR shall formulate policies/guidelines and implement gender-sensitive standard operating procedures; gender-fair criteria in hiring, promotions, and in representation in various committees and working groups; non-gender biased protection, security, and welfare of male and female employees to make DAR a gender-fair work place.
5. Policy Review and Program Enhancements on the three (3) major components of CARP -Land Tenure Improvement (LTI), Program Beneficiaries Development (PBD), and Agrarian Justice Delivery (AJD).
The key areas above involve the three (3) major program components of CARP which is the core of agrarian reform. The main focus of interventions should be the agrarian reform beneficiaries (ARBs), without ignoring the DAR personnel at all levels who are equally-important. The main premise is that ARB organizations cannot be transformed into gender-equitable and sustainable organizations if the DAR implementers are gender-blind. Hence, in policy review and program enhancements, the interwoven gender mainstreaming interventions both for DAR implementers in LTI, PBD and AJD and the ARBs should be evident.
In LTI, policy review shall be prioritized on the identification of beneficiaries, generation of Certificates of Land Ownership Award (CLOAs), survey services, and other land acquisition and distribution processes.
In PBD, policy and program enhancements shall be focused on the access of men and women to support services, such as membership in ARB organizations, credit and microfinance, training, livelihood and enterprise development interventions, marketing assistance, basic social services, and physical infrastructure.
In AJD, policy enhancements shall ensure that women ARBs with legal concerns should be given equal attention by the DAR.
The DAR shall issue the GAD Mainstreaming Strategic Framework and Strategic Directions (for 2011-2014) containing all details in the implementation of this framework within sixty (60) days from the effectivity of this A.O. DaTHAc