GAD Planning and Budgeting for Local Government Units

Summary

This video outlines the process of gender-responsive planning and budgeting (GAD) for local government units (LGUs) in the Philippines. It emphasizes the importance of addressing gender issues, such as economic empowerment and ending violence, through a structured annual GAD plan and budget. LGUs must incorporate gender perspectives in their programs, ensuring the allocation of at least 5% of their budget to gender-related activities. The video also details the roles of various agencies, guidelines for submitting GAD plans, and the steps required to achieve a gender-fair, inclusive society.

Takeaways

• 😀 LGUs play a significant role in addressing gender issues and concerns, ensuring equal access to services and opportunities for all.
• 😀 The Magna Carta of Women (MCW) and the General Appropriations Act mandate LGUs to prepare an annual Gender and Development (GAD) plan and budget.
• 😀 The GAD plan and budget should address gender issues through systematically designed programs, projects, and activities.
• 😀 Local government units need to establish a GAD Focal Point System (GFPS) to guide their gender mainstreaming efforts.
• 😀 Capacity development and gender audits are crucial for ensuring that LGUs are effectively mainstreaming gender in their programs and policies.
• 😀 LGUs must collect sex-disaggregated data to support gender-responsive decision-making and service delivery.
• 😀 The GAD budget should be at least 5% of the total LGU budget and should cover maintenance and operating expenses, personnel services, and capital outlay.
• 😀 The 5% GAD budget aims to influence the remaining 95% of the LGU budget towards gender-responsive programs and projects.
• 😀 LGUs must apply the Harmonized Gender and Development Guidelines (HGDG) to assess and ensure the gender responsiveness of their programs.
• 😀 The process of submitting, reviewing, and endorsing GAD plans and budgets follows a structured timeline and involves multiple layers of review from local to regional offices.

Q & A

What role do local government units (LGUs) play in addressing gender issues?

LGUs play a significant role in addressing gender issues by ensuring equal access to services and opportunities for both women and men, especially marginalized groups, through promoting gender equality and economic empowerment, political participation, and ending violence against women and girls.

What is the Magna Carta of Women (MCW) and how does it relate to LGUs?

The Magna Carta of Women (MCW) is a law that mandates both national government agencies and LGUs to prepare an annual Gender and Development (GAD) plan and budget to address gender issues and ensure equal opportunities for women and men.

What is the purpose of the annual GAD plan and budget?

The annual GAD plan and budget is a systematically designed set of programs, projects, and activities aimed at addressing specific gender issues and the GAD mandates of an organization, ensuring gender equality and responsiveness.

What are the essential elements LGUs need to consider when preparing their GAD plan and budget?

LGUs need to consider having a GAD focal point system (GFPS), capacity development for GFPS members, conducting a gender audit, establishing a GAD database with sex-disaggregated data, and ensuring proper allocation of the GAD budget.

Why is gender auditing important for LGUs?

Gender auditing is crucial as it evaluates the extent of gender mainstreaming within an LGU’s policies, programs, and projects, ensuring they are gender-responsive and effectively address the needs of both men and women.

How should an LGU determine its GAD agenda?

An LGU should determine its GAD agenda through consultations with local stakeholders, using gender analysis and available sex-disaggregated data to identify priority gender issues for the duration of the local leadership's term.

What is the minimum percentage of an LGU’s budget that should be allocated for GAD programs?

At least 5% of the total LGU budget should be allocated for GAD programs and activities, which should align with the gender issues and commitments identified in the GAD plan.

What is the role of the harmonized gender and development guidelines (HGDG) in GAD planning and budgeting?

The HGDG helps assess the gender responsiveness of an LGU’s major programs and projects. It provides tools to ensure the GAD budget is effectively applied to these programs and to evaluate them through the application of checklists during implementation and monitoring.

What is the process for submitting and reviewing the GAD plans and budgets in LGUs?

LGUs must submit their GAD plans and budgets to the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) for review. Provinces and highly urbanized cities submit to the regional office, while municipalities and component cities submit to their provincial offices, ensuring alignment and gender responsiveness.

What should an LGU do once the GAD plans and budgets are endorsed by the DILG?

Once endorsed, the local chief executive (LCE) should issue policies to disseminate and implement the GAD plans and budgets across the LGU, ensuring proper execution and alignment with gender goals.