August 23, 1995
DAR MEMORANDUM CIRCULAR NO. 21-95
SUBJECT : Creation of the Program Beneficiaries Development Coordinating Unit Under the Office of the Undersecretary for Field Operation/Support Services and the Operationalization of the PBD/SS Management Team
A. Backgrounder:
In implementing the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP), the Department of Agrarian Reform is mandated to improve land tenure through better access to land an its fruits and to promote the welfare of program beneficiaries through the coordinated delivery of support services. In pursuit of this mandate, the DAR is operationalizing two major programs, namely: Land Tenure Improvement (LTI) and Program Beneficiaries Development (PBD). EIcSTD
LTI is pursued in line with the constitutional mandate recognizing the rights of landless farmers and farm workers to own the lands they till and to receive a just share of the fruits thereof. It has two basic subcomponents, namely; physical land transfer and non-physical land transfer.
PBD on the other hand, has two major components; the Social Infrastructure Building and Strengthening (SIBS) and the Economic and Physical Infrastructure Support (ECOPIS). Operationalizing the SIBS calls for the education and training of the agrarian reform beneficiaries and the formation and strengthening of ARBs organizations, agrarian cooperatives and agrarian movement building. ECOPIS on the other hand, entails the building up of a conducive and supportive environment for farming to be a profitable endeavor. This can be attained through adequate and timely delivery of support services, particularly credit, technology and basic infrastructure.
B. LTI-PBD Program Operationalization
In the implementation of CARP, DAR sees to it that while the two programs of LTI and PBD are implemented according to their own tasks and objectives, each one is an integral part of the whole Agrarian Reform Program. There has to be well-defined delineation of responsibilities of the different organizational units within the respect to the operationalization of an integral LTI-PBD Development Framework.
The Office of the Undersecretary for Field Operation Group and Support Services Office is primarily responsible for the integrated operationalization of both programs. The Field Operation Group is comprised of the Bureau of Land Acquisition and Distribution (BLAD) and the Bureau of Land Development (BLD) while the Support Services Office is comprised of the Bureau of Agrarian Reform Beneficiaries Development (BARBD) and the Project Development and Management Service (PDMS). cTECHI
C. Office of the Undersecretary for FOG/SSO Support Units
Effective June 16, 1995 the Office of the Undersecretary for FOG/SSO was restructured to operationalize the following programs with the corresponding functions and responsible units:
I. Information Management Program for Operation
Functions:
1. Data analysis for corporate planning.
2. Capability/building and extension.
Responsible Unit Information Management and Research Unit
II. Private Agricultural Lands Program
Functions:
1. Geographical/crop-based/Landholding-based
2. Pipeline monitoring
Responsible Unit Private Agricultural Lands Unit
III. Technical Assistance to Field Operations Program
Functions:
1. Document-retrieval/research
2. Budget request/Logistics
3. Coordination with CARP Agencies
Responsible Unit: Field Support Unit
IV. Peasants & Landowners Assistance Program
Functions:
1. Communications
2. Walk-in clients
3. PO Cases
Responsible Unit: Peasants/Landowners Assistance Unit
V. E.O. 448 Program
Functions:
1. Government-Owned Lands (GOL)
2. Foreclosed Government Financial Institution Lands (GFI)
Responsible Unit Government Owned Lands Unit
D. Rationalizing the FOG/SSO PBD Coordinating Unit
Considering the present programs and structure of the Office of the Undersecretary for Field Operation Group and Support Services Office, its primary focus are LTI concerns. However, recognizing the need for an integrated operationalization of LTI-PBD Development Intervention, there is a need to focus coordination of PBD concerns at this level. Thus the need for a PBD Coordinating Unit with the primary function of coordinating the operationalization of PBD programs and projects.
Functions
1. Coordinates with DAR service/bureaus and field offices in the operationalization of PBD programs and projects.
2. Establishes liaison with the department service/bureaus, field offices and LGUs, NGOs and POs in developing and programming support services delivery/PBD programs and projects.
3. Integrates the department bureaus/service monitoring and evaluation of PBD programs and projects.
Composition
1 PBD Coordinating Unit Head
1 Point Person for SIBS
1 Point Person for ECOPIS
2 Secretariat Support Staff
E. PBD Support Services Management Team
To orchestrate the operationalization of Program Beneficiaries Development/support services and to provide policy direction at the national level; a Management Team how to be not up. The Management Team will be composed of the following:
Ø PBD/SS Director
Ø PBD Coordinating Unit Head
Ø IMR FOG/SSO Unit Head
Ø PDMS Representative
Ø BARBD Representative
Ø FAO-TSARRD Representatives
In addition to the above regular members of the Team, the following services/bureaus have to be represented on-call basis:
Ø BARIE Representative
Ø MIS Representative
The PBD/SS Director should report directly to the Undersecretary for Field Operation Group/Support Services Office. Members of the Management Team representing their respective services/bureaus should be directly responsible to their respective Directors with regards to the performance of their functions.
The PBD Coordinating Unit of the Office of the Undersecretary for FOG/SSO will have to provide the needed technical and secretariat support for the PBD/SS Management Team.
This circular takes effect upon designation of personnel to compose the unit and supercedes previous issuances inconsistent hereto.
Diliman, Quezon City 23 August, 1995.
(SGD.) JOSE NOEL D. OLANO
Undersecretary