PCW Memorandum Circular No. 2021-04: Preparation and Online Submission of Fiscal Year (FY) 2022 Gender and Development (GAD) Plans and Budgets
| Date | 24 August 2021 |
| To | All Heads of Executive Departments, National Government Agencies, Bureaus, Offices, State Universities and Colleges (SUCs), Government Owned and/or Controlled Corporations (GOCCs), Legislative and Judiciary Branches, Constitutional Bodies, Other Government Instrumentalities, and All Others Concerned |
| Subject | Preparation and Online Submission of Fiscal Year (FY) 2022 Gender and Development (GAD) Plans and Budgets |
1.0 Preparation and Submission of FY 2022 GAD Plans and Budgets (GPBs)
1.1. In accordance with Section 36 of Republic Act No. 9710 or the Magna Carta of Women (MCW), the Philippine Commission on Women (PCW) calls on all national government agencies and instrumentalities1 to prepare and submit their FY 2022 GAD Plan and Budget (GPB) to the Philippine Commission on Women (PCW).
1.2. In the preparation and submission of the FY 2022 GPB, national government agencies and instrumentalities shall observe the following:
1.2.1. Identification of Gender Issues and GAD Mandates, and corresponding GAD Programs, Activities and Projects (PAPs)
1.2.1.1. The gender issues/GAD mandates and corresponding GAD programs, activities and projects (PAPs) to be included in the GPB should be within the context of the agency’s mandates including those mandates provided in international and national laws, commitments and plans on women and gender equality, as well as gender issues, including those identified in the agency’s GAD Agenda, which is the agency’s strategic framework and plan on gender mainstreaming, and achieving women’s empowerment and gender equality (refer to PCW Memorandum Circular 2018-04, for details).
1.2.1.2. Agencies shall also prioritize addressing the gender issues outlined in the Gender Equality and Women Empowerment (GEWE) Plan 2019-2025, in their annual GPB and GAD Agenda. Agencies shall refer to the GEWE Plan Results Matrices for the GAD issues and corresponding GAD results, indicators, targets, and strategies to be integrated in their annual GPB.
1.2.1.3. The identification of gender issues and GAD PAPs to be addressed in the plan shall also be informed by the results of gender analysis and gender audit, particularly the application of the Gender Mainstreaming Evaluation Framework (GMEF) (refer to PCW Memorandum Circular 2016-06).2
1.2.1.4. For member agencies of the National Steering Committee on Women, Peace and Security (NSCWPS) and agencies that implement PAPs in conflict-/post-conflict affected areas, the preparation of their GPBs and GAD ARs shall also be guided by the PCW-OPAPP Joint Circular 2014-01 on the integration of women, peace and security PAPs in the GPB.
1.2.1.5. Member agencies of other inter-agency bodies on GAD [e.g., the Inter-Agency Council on Violence Against Women and Their Children (IACVAWC), the Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking (IACAT)], and the Inter-Agency Oversight Committee on the Safe Spaces Act shall also include in the GPB their commitment/s under these inter-agency bodies’ plans.
1.2.2. GAD Budget Costing and Attribution
1.2.2.1. As provided under Section 36(a) of the MCW, the GAD budget, which is the cost of implementing GAD programs, activities and projects (PAPs), shall be at least five percent (5%) of the agency’s total budget appropriations. As such, GPBs that do not meet the minimum 5% requirement shall not be endorsed by PCW. Agencies are strongly advised to use the tool for budget attribution found in Section 1.2.2.2 of this Circular to ensure compliance to the MCW.
1.2.2.1.1. The computation of the minimum five percent (5%) GAD budget shall be based on the agency’s total budget appropriations provided in the FY 2022 National Expenditure Program (NEP). It may be drawn from the agency’s maintenance and other operating expenses (MOOE), capital outlay (CO), and/or personnel services (PS).
1.2.2.1.2. The determination of compliance to the minimum five percent (5%) GAD budget shall be by agency and not by constituent unit (e.g., regional, district or field offices). Thus, the GAD budget of a regional office or a constituent unit may not necessarily reach five percent (5%) of its total annual budget allocation, but the central office shall ensure that the agency as a whole will meet the minimum five percent (5%) GAD budget based on the agency’s total budget appropriations.
1.2.2.1.3. For GOCCs, the computation of the minimum five percent (5%) GPB requirement shall be based on their corporate operating budget (COB).
1.2.2.1.4. As provided under Section 2.1. of R.A. 7192 or the Women in Development and Nation Building Act and Section 37.A.2 of the MCW Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR), national government agencies and other government instrumentalities shall ensure that five to thirty percent (5-30%) of funds received from foreign governments and multilateral agencies are in support of gender-responsive programs and projects. In line with this, the Investment Coordination Committee (ICC) also issued a Memorandum, dated September 30, 2016, on the ICC policy on the integration of the Harmonized Gender and Development Guidelines (HGDG) in the ICC process. It requires proponent agencies to accomplish and submit their accomplished HGDG Checklist for evaluation of the Secretariat to ensure gender-responsiveness of the proposed project. In this regard, agencies shall prioritize the inclusion of agency programs and projects that are funded through Official Development Assistance (ODA) as part of their GAD-attributed PAPs.
1.2.2.2. Budget Attribution Using the Harmonized Gender and Development Guidelines (HGDG)
1.2.2.2.1. Aside from implementing direct GAD PAPs to address organization- or client-focused gender issues or GAD mandates, agencies may attribute a portion or the whole budget of the agency’s major program/s3 or project/s4 to the GAD budget using the HGDG tool. Assessing major program/project using the HGDG tool enables the agency to identify strengths and areas for improvement to gradually increase the gender-responsiveness of the program/project. Major programs/projects subjected to the HGDG assessment shall be reflected under the GPB section on “Attributed Programs.” Direct GAD activities of the agency shall no longer be subjected to the HGDG assessment.
1.2.2.2.2. The percentage score of the program/project in the HGDG assessment shall correspond to the percentage of the budget of the agency’s existing and proposed major program/project that may be attributed to the GAD budget: Provided, that programs/projects with HGDG scores below 4.0 shall not be eligible for budget attribution. The formula shall be as follows:
1.2.2.2.3. PDF copies of the results of assessment using the appropriate HGDG design checklist and other relevant and supporting documents or means of verification (e.g., project design, concept note, or attendance sheets of stakeholder consultations) shall be attached to the agency’s GPB submission.
1.2.3. Consolidation of GAD PAPs and Preparation of Agency-wide GPB
1.2.3.1. GAD PAPs of lower constituent units (i.e., regional, district and field offices) shall be integrated in the agency-consolidated GPB. For example, in the case of the Department of Health (DOH), the GAD issues and corresponding PAPs of retained hospitals and treatment and rehabilitation centers shall be integrated in the DOH consolidated GPB. The same shall also apply to GOCCs and SUCs with different branches/campuses.
1.2.3.2. Central or head offices of agencies are encouraged to conduct online meetings/consultations and use online collaboration tools such as spreadsheet applications (outside of the Gender Mainstreaming Monitoring System) to engage and work with their constituent units for the preparation and consolidation of their GPB.
1.2.4. Process of Submission
1.2.4.1. Line departments, constitutional bodies, judicial and legislative bodies, attached agencies/bureaus, other executive offices (OEOs), and government-owned and/or –controlled corporations (GOCCs), with the exemption of local water districts (LWDs), shall submit their agency-consolidated GPB directly to PCW, for review and endorsement.
1.2.4.2. As provided under PCW MC 2016-06, the review and endorsement of LWD GPB by PCW shall be under a moratorium. Nonetheless, LWDs shall continue to prepare their FY 2022 GPB following the parameters set under PCW MC 2015-03, and the guidelines provided under this Memorandum Circular on the identification of gender issues, mandates and corresponding PAPs, as well as the costing and attribution of the GAD Budget. All LWD GPBs shall be submitted to the LWUA for monitoring purposes.
1.2.4.3. In the case of state universities and colleges (SUCs), their GPBs shall first be submitted to and reviewed by the concerned regional office of the Commission on Higher Education (CHED). Once the GPBs are acceptable to the CHED Regional Office, it shall submit the GPB to PCW, for review and endorsement.
1.2.5. Endorsement of GPB
1.2.5.1. PCW shall endorse the FY 2022 GPB if: (1) the minimum five percent (5%) GAD Budget requirement has been met, and (2) the entries in the GPB are compliant with the provisions of the MCW and relevant guidelines on GAD Planning and Budgeting.
1.2.5.2. In case the GPB is not endorsed by PCW after its review due to partial/non-compliance with the conditions provided in Section 1.2.5.1, the agency may request for reconsideration to resubmit its GPB for review up to two times only. If there are still deficiencies after these two rounds of review, then the GPB will finally be deemed unendorsed.
1.2.5.3. PCW-endorsed GPBs shall be authenticated by the Gender Mainstreaming Monitoring System (GMMS) with a QR code. Agencies shall print the PCW-endorsed GPB for signature of their agency head, and disseminate the signed copy to their concerned units. Agencies shall also furnish their respective Commission on Audit (COA) Audit Team a copy of their signed GPB within 5 working days from its endorsement.
1.2.5.4. Agencies with a PCW-endorsed GPB may opt to submit an adjusted GPB to take into account changes in the budget once the General Appropriations Act (GAA) is passed. Agencies shall submit a letter outlining the proposed changes to the endorsed GPB to PCW for the latter to make an initial assessment if there is indeed a need to adjust the endorsed GPB and/or if the proposed new GAD PAPs are acceptable. If the proposed changes are indeed necessary based on the initial assessment of PCW, the agency shall be given access to encode and submit the revisions to the GPB through the GMMS, for review and re-endorsement of PCW.
2.0 Requirements for the Online Submission of GPBs through the GMMS
2.1. Except for the pilot agencies enumerated under Section 3 of this Circular, the submission, review and endorsement of GPBs shall be coursed through the GMMS Version 2, PCW’s online system for managing GAD profiles, GPBs and GAD ARs, as well as for generating GAD-related reports.
2.2. Agencies that do not have or need to update their user account/s in the GMMS may download the registration form found at the PCW website and submit the filled-out registration form for the online submission of the FY 2022 GPB.
2.3. Agencies shall assign (a) member/s of their GFPS who is/are familiar with the GAD planning and budgeting process to serve as their GMMS focal person/s (FP). The GMMS focal person/s will be responsible for: (1) maintaining the agency GAD profile in the GMMS and (2) encoding and submitting the GPB of the agency through the GMMS.
2.4. For SUC GPB submission, review and endorsement, CHED shall also assign GFPS member/s as GMMS reviewer/s and endorser/s of SUC GPBs to PCW. The GMMS reviewers have access to review and input their comments to the GPBs of SUCs. They will receive a system-generated e-mail notice every time an SUC submits its GPB. The GMMS endorsers, on the other hand, are the account users who are authorized to transmit reviewed GPBs of SUCs to PCW.
2.5. An agency may opt to assign a GFPS member to be the account holder of one or more functions (i.e., as both GMMS reviewer and endorser).
2.6. GMMS focal persons, encoders, reviewers, and endorsers of agencies must familiarize themselves with the system. GMMS instructional materials may be accessed through the PCW website.
3.0 Piloting of the Revised GPB Form
3.1. In line with the goal of transitioning from an output-based to a results-based approach to GAD planning and budgeting, the following pilot agencies shall prepare their FY 2022 GPB using the revised GPB form:
3.1.1. Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources
3.1.2. Commission on Higher Education
3.1.3. Department of Agriculture
3.1.4. Department of National Defense
3.1.5. Department of Social Welfare and Development
3.1.6. Department of Trade and Industry
3.1.7. Development Bank of the Philippines
3.1.8. Government Service Insurance System
3.1.9. Land Bank of the Philippines
3.1.10. National Economic and Development Authority
3.1.11. Philippine Carabao Center
3.1.12. Philippine Center for Postharvest Development and Mechanization
3.1.13. Philippine Rice Research Institute
3.1.14. Technical Education and Skills Development Authority
3.2. The submission, review and endorsement of FY 2022 GPBs of pilot agencies shall be coursed through the GMMS Version 3 following the submission schedule in Section 4.0.
3.3. Pilot agencies may still access their user accounts in the GMMS Version 2 to view their previous GPB and GAD AR documents.
3.4. Agencies shall register their GMMS Version 3 system users – GMMS Focal Person/s, Budget Officer/s, and encoder/s (optional). The GMMS Version 3 User Registration Form can be downloaded here.
3.5. The encoding of the GPB shall be initiated by the system user designated as the Budget Officer. S/he shall be responsible for setting and encoding the proposed budget for each of the agency’s program, activity and project (PAP) following Sections 1.2.2.1.3 and 1.2.2.1.4.
3.6. The GMMS Focal Person, on the other hand, shall be responsible for maintaining the agency profile, as well as encoding and submitting the GPB. The agency has the option to register encoder/s who may input the entries of the GPB into the system, but only the GMMS Focal Person user/s shall have the capability to submit the GPB to PCW.
4.0 Deadline for GPB Submission through the GMMS Version 2 or 3
| 25 October 2021 | Deadline of SUCs for the encoding and submission of FY 2022 GPBs through the GMMS, for review of CHED |
| 03 November 2021 | Deadline of encoding and submission to PCW of FY 2022 GPBs of the following through GMMS: a. Constitutional bodies b. Legislative and judicial bodies c. Office of the President d. Office of the Vice-President e. Other Executive Offices (OEOs) |
| 08 November 2021 | Deadline of encoding and submission to PCW of FY 2022 GPBs of executive departments and their attached agencies through GMMS |
| 15 November 2021 | Deadline of encoding and submission to PCW of FY 2022 GPBs of GOCCs through the GMMS |
| 22 November 2021 | Deadline for CHED to submit to PCW the reviewed FY 2022 GPBs of SUCs through the GMMS |
5.0 Conduct of the National GAD Budget Forum
5.1. For further guidance on the GAD planning and budgeting process and the use of the HGDG tool, agencies are encouraged to attend the PCW GAD Webinar 5.
Session Title: GAD Planning and Budgeting Forum: From Preparation to GAD Funds Audit
Schedule: October 7, 2021; 1:00-5:00 pm
Opening of Registration: September 28, 2021; 2:00 pm
5.2. For details, please visit the PCW GAD Webinar Series 2021 page.
6.0 For questions or clarifications regarding the GAD Planning and Budgeting Forum and the use of the GMMS, agencies may send an email to records@pcw.gov.ph.
7.0 For guidance and appropriate action.
(Sgd.) SANDRA S. MONTANO
Chairperson
DOWNLOAD a copy.
End Notes:
1 Local government units (LGUs) shall follow the GAD planning and budgeting guidelines set under PCW DILG-DBM-NEDA Joint Memorandum Circular 2013-01, as amended by JMC 2016-01, while local water districts (LWDs) shall be guided by PCW Memorandum Circular 2016-06.
2 Agencies are highly encouraged to use gender analysis tools to identify emerging gender issues (particularly those brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic) that are within their respective mandates, to be addressed in the agency GPB.
3 A program is “a homogeneous group of activities necessary for the performance of a major purpose for which a government agency is established, for the basic maintenance of the agency’s administrative operations or for the provisions of staff support to the agency’s administrative operations or for the provisions of staff support to the agency’s line functions.”
4 A project is a “special agency undertaking which (is) to be carried out within a definite time frame and which is intended to result some pre-determined measure of goods and services.”
