GUEST COLUMNIST
Toward the end of April, I had the immense pleasure of joining the initial drafting of the fourth Philippine Human Rights Plan (PHRP4) organized by the Presidential Human Rights Committee Secretariat (PHRCS) at Malacañang, Manila. As representative of Department of Budget and Management (DBM) Secretary Amenah “Mina” F. Pangandaman, I participated in the thematic cluster workshop focused on the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW).
The Budget Secretary is known as among the most vocal Filipina advocates of women’s rights of our time. And from my observation, Sec. Mina’s passion for any endeavor is communicable. She can inspire or make those around her care for the battles she fights for. With her, I became more involved and personally invested in women’s empowerment.
Having said this, I believe it is beneficial for the Philippines to have more women in power advocating for gender equality and responsiveness, hopefully just as dedicated and zealous as Sec. Mina. This call to promote gender fairness extends beyond those in positions of authority – it encompasses everyone, especially fellow women who should support one another the most.
A brief background on CEDAW, the Philippines signed the International Bill of Rights of Women on July 15, 1980, and ratified it on Aug. 5, 1981, becoming the first Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) country to do so. Additionally, we ratified the Optional Protocol to CEDAW on Nov. 12, 2003, which provides mechanisms for addressing violations of CEDAW.
At one point in time, we could say we were ahead of our neighboring countries in the field of gender and development.
On that account, I commend the PHRCS led by Usec. Severo Catura, together with PHRP4 head consultant Dr. Rosette Gilda Librea and Ma. Rebecca Rafaela Baylosis for conducting the cluster meeting. These are some of the people who truly care and work hard to polish our human rights strategies and policies.
To elaborate further on the forum, delegates from pertinent government agencies such as the Department of the Interior and Local Government, Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), Department of Agriculture, Commission on Higher Education, Department of Education, Department of Justice, Department of Foreign Affairs, and the like, were gathered to share their inputs in addressing the continuing human rights issues and concerns, as well as those arising from engagements with international and regional human rights mechanisms and other stakeholders.
As Sec. Mina has mentioned in her recent engagement with the International Monetary Fund in Washington, DC, a lot of interventions are going on in gender and development not only in the Philippines but all over the world.
During the workshop, I echoed the sentiments of Sec. Mina, and emphasized the integration of gender tagging into the national budget so that our government could track and identify areas in which we could improve gender equality.
We are pushing for gender-responsive budgeting in the Philippines, and central to this is the Gender and Development (GAD) budget. This policy directs all government departments and agencies to allocate a minimum of five percent of their total annual budgets for gender programs and activities. It has been a vital feature of the annual General Appropriations Act, which has been enhanced by the Magna Carta of Women (RA 9710).
In enhancing gender tagging, the DBM has been conducting training with the Local Government Units on how they can manage and utilize efficiently their GAD funds.
It was also very satisfying to hear about all the efforts of the current administration to elevate the rights of women in the country.
For instance, in 2023, the Department of Science and Technology DOST’s Small Enterprise Technology Upgrading Program generated employment opportunities for 3,348 Filipino women. In addition, 68 percent of recipients of loans from the Small Business Corporation were women, indicating their increased participation in financial activities such as account ownership, savings, and credit access compared to men.
GAD principles have been embedded into social protection initiatives like the DSWD’s Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps), which benefits 4.4 million households, and provides conditional cash transfers aimed at improving education, healthcare, and financial inclusion. Direct cash grants are conferred to mothers, leading to enhanced survival rates, better health outcomes, and improved educational opportunities for their children.
To empower women with essential skills for success, the Philippines offers scholarships ranging from secondary school to postgraduate levels, with a focus on promoting science-based education and nurturing female graduates in STEM fields. The list goes on.
The goal of the cluster meeting is to create a new Philippine Human Rights Plan that would develop and implement proactive policies and programs to close gender gaps and ensure equal opportunities between men and women.
With persistent, brilliant, and impassioned leaders like Sec. Mina in the Philippine government, there is hope!