Senator Loren Legarda on Friday, May 31 welcomed the signing into law of the Philippine Ecosystem and Natural Capital Accounting System (PENCAS) Act or Republic Act No. 11995, which will revolutionize the way the government integrates environmental sustainability into the country’s economic framework.

“It has been a long and pioneering journey since we first filed what we then called the Philippine Economic Environmental and Natural Resources Accounting (PEENRA) in 2001,” Legarda said in a statement.

“This signing also ties into our efforts from 1998 for disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation, as economic indicators, especially in damage estimation, will no longer be nature-blind,” she said.

Passage of the PENCAS Act, she said is a transformative development for the Philippines.

“As we embrace PENCAS, we affirm our commitment to valuing our natural resources alongside our economic metrics,” Legarda stated.

The PENCAS Act mandates the inclusion of the country’s natural resources as a vital component of the national economy, supplementing traditional metrics such as gross domestic product (GDP) and human capital. 

This approach will help the government with essential data, aligning national planning, policymaking, and budgeting with the United Nations’ System of Environmental-Economic Accounting (SEEA) standards.

“It is a data-driven approach that will inform policy making, allocate resources efficiently, raise public awareness, and align with global sustainability goals, solidifying the importance of preserving these invaluable natural assets for economic and environmental well-being,” she explained.

Legarda thanked the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA), Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), and Department of Agriculture (DA), along with various experts who dedicated their time and effort since the pandemic to forming and enhancing the measure.

 “The tireless support from these parties emphasizes the urgent need to measure what we treasure and shows the consensus on the importance of this law,” she remarked.