Regional Workshop on Comprehensive National Plan of Action on Disability - Towards the Mid-point Review of the Biwako Millennium Framework for Action towards an Inclusive, Barrier-free and Rights-based Society for Persons with Disabilities in Asia and the Pacific (BMF)
Bangkok, Thailand, 19-21 October 2005

Philippines - Country Report

A Review of the Progress of Implementation of the Biwako Millenium Framework for Action Towards an Inclusive, Barrier-Free and Rights Based Society for Persons With Disability

By: Catalina L. Fermin
Executive Director
National Council for the Welfare of Disabled Persons

Introduction:

The Philippines as a member of the world community has expressed its commitment towards improving the “lot of humanity in the twenty-first century.”  The Philippines has fourteen basic sectors that are considered marginalized, and who have concerns and needs that must be addressed.  One of these sectors are the Filipinos with disabilities, majority of whom are poor and can not access to services provided by government.

The country is guided by two important documents in the implementation of programs and services to empower Filipinos with disabilities towards their integration into the mainstream of society.  The BIWAKO Millennium Framework for Action Towards an Inclusive, Barrier-Free and Rights-Based Society for Persons with Disabilities in the Asian Pacific Region provided direction in the development of the National Plan of Action for the Philippine Decade of Persons with Disabilities (2003-2012).  Both these documents heralded the inclusion of the millennium development goals that will provide persons with disabilities the opportunity to be participating members in the development of the country.

Two years have lapsed since the declaration of the extension of the Asian and Pacific Decade of Persons with Disabilities.  It is appropriate that countries in the Region must assess the impact of these two years to the lives of their people with disabilities.  It is the period when the need to reinforce the initiatives of countries in the achievement of the Goals of the  Decade is required.

BIWAKO Millennium Framework for Action Towards an Inclusive, Barrier-Free and Rights-Based Society for Persons with Disabilities:  An Assessment of Shortcomings in Its Implementation

The BIWAKO Millennium Framework for Action Towards an Inclusive, Barrier-Free and Rights-Based Society for Persons with Disabilities in Asian and the Pacific sets out regional policy recommendations for action by Governments and concerned stakeholders including persons with disabilities.  It is a regional framework that has integrated the Millennium goals and targets to ensure that issues on disability  become an integral part of efforts to realize the goals of the Decade.

The BIWAKO Framework for Action supports the countries in the AP regions by providing policy and program directions in planning and implementation of programs and projects for people with disabilities.  It comprehensively embodies recommendations and actions required in addressing the rights-based needs of the sector with disability.  However, it has somewhat set targets that are beyond the capacity of a country because of constraints in resources.  This can be illustrated with the targets in priority area on  Early Detection, Early Intervention and Education.  Countries in AP Region are wanting in resources to address not only disability issues but other more immediate concerns.

For the Philippines, the 75% target for school age children and youth with disabilities to have completed a full course of primary schooling seems to be very difficult to achieve even after the Decade.  At present, after the two past decades, only 2% of these children have access to education as reported by the Department of Education.   Education for children with disabilities has to reckon with the educational needs of other children without disability who are greater in number.

The lack of data contributes greatly to the neglect of disability issues including development of policies, programs and services that are appropriate and relevant to the needs of PWDs.  Most of the countries in the Region has no system for data collection and analysis to establish disability statistics that will support policy formulation and program development. There is no standard definition and categories of disability that will allow country to country comparison and exchange.

It is important that  the BIWAKO Framework for Action should not only encourage governments to adopt the International Classification of Functioning Disability and Health but recommends its adoption as a matter of policy and necessary technical assistance provided. 

The National Plan of Action for the Philippine Decade of Persons with Disabilities

The National Council for the Welfare of Disabled Persons was tasked to spearhead the formulation of a Comprehensive National Plan of Action for the Decade.  This is in line with Presidential Proclamation 240 issued on August 21, 2002 declaring the period 2003-2012 as the Philippine Decade of Persons with Disabilities.  This National Plan of Action serves as the national framework in the development and implementation of appropriate, relevant and sustainable programs, projects and services for Filipinos with disabilities. The Plan is in line with the BIWAKO Millennium Framework for Action the regional policy for the Asia-Pacific Region in the observance of the Second AP Decade for Persons with Disabilities (2003-2012).  The National Plan embodies the country’s direction and focus of development initiatives of stakeholders within the next ten years.  It adheres to the goals, targets and strategies of the BIWAKO Millennium Framework for Action.

The Plan was a product of nationwide consultations with all sectors, national government agencies, non-government organizations and self-help groups of persons with disabilities.  During these consultations all the sectors were given opportunity to provide inputs in the form of recommendations in order to appropriately respond to the concerns of the sector with disability.  Prior to these consultations and to provide stakeholders the information as to the country’s performance in the past Decade, an assessment of the country’s accomplishment in terms of meeting the rights-based needs of PWDs was undertaken by the National Council for the Welfare of Disabled Persons.  The participation and involvement in the assessment of the accomplishments and formulation of the National Plan by all the sectors and most importantly the Filipinos with disabilities created a sense of ownership among all the stakeholders, associates and persons with disabilities.  The Plan is not considered as the “NCWDP Plan for the Decade” but rather a country plan which serves as the general framework towards the empowerment of persons with disabilities.  A framework that focuses on the creation of inclusive, barrier-free and rights-based society for Filipinos with disabilities. 

During the development of the Plan, all involved sectors were oriented on the BIWAKO Millennium Framework, that guided them in their recommendations and inputs.  They were also apprised of the challenges and the recommendations to address the identified problems and gaps to improve the quality and system of delivery of programs and services. These appraisal was a result of the nationwide assessment and consultations regarding country’s performance in the first and second Asian Pacific Decade of Disabled Persons. Technical assistance to stakeholders was provided by the National Council for the Welfare of Disabled Persons for more clearer and unified understanding of the goals, targets of the Plan.  The processes of consultation, review, and consensus-seeking in drafting the Plan ran for a year which was sufficient enough to exhaust the sectors recommendations towards making the Plan comprehensive, relevant and timely. This participative planning and decision-making brought about  more comprehensive, rights-based and more relevant programs for a highly motivated and participating sector with disability in nation-building.

In line with the formulation of the Plan, the Council developed “The Planning Guide for All Stakeholders” in 2002.  The Guide provided specific directions to all planners and implementers of programs and services for persons with disabilities at the national, regional and local levels.  Using this guide that included matrices for planning, monitoring, and evaluation, all the stakeholders submitted to the Council their one year, three years, five years and 10-year plans that are feasible in their area.  These plans were incorporated in the “National Plan of Action for the Philippine Decade of Persons with Disabilities”. These sectoral plans serve as the commitments of the stakeholders and were categorized according to the priority areas in the National Plan.  The finalized Plan was distributed to all stakeholders and orientations were conducted at the national, regional and local levels.

A very critical factor in operationalizing the Plan is its support system both financial and other non-financial resources.  The NCWDP incorporated a Section on Financing to the Plan to ensure that the various programs/services are implemented and targets are achieved.  Legal bases have been issued like the Presidential Proclamation 240 declaring 2003-2012 as the Philippine Decade of Persons with Disabilities stating funds for the purpose shall be sourced out from the 1% percent of the annual budget of all agencies for disability-related programs.  This 1% provision is operationalizing the Philippine General Appropriations Act General provisions nos. 29 and 31 with the implementing guidelines issued jointly by both Department of Budget and Management and Department of Social Welfare and Development.  It is also stated in the Plan that funds and resources for programs and services for persons with disabilities shall come from both the public and private as well as foreign sources as  grants and loan, Official Development Assistance, donations and gifts.

The NCWDP is tasked to monitor the Plan implementation and to facilitate monitoring forms/matrices have been attached to the Plan for easy reference.  These forms contain the targets/indicators per priority area which the stakeholders will accomplish annually relative to their sectoral plans.

In December 2004, the NCWDP began monitoring the implementation of the National Plan by requiring the stakeholders to submit their 2-year (2003-2004) accomplishments based on their commitments.  The Council processed and consolidated these plans into one Report which summarizes  the over-all performance of our stakeholders for 2003-2004. At a cursory glances the Report reflects which priority areas were emphasized and what areas were short changed.  This document will serve as an important input to the National Biennial Assessment of the National Plan for the Philippine Decade of Persons with Disabilities on October 25-27,  2005.  This is a national consultative forum to be participated in by stakeholders including the persons with disabilities who are the Plan’s beneficiaries.  This National forum will aim to validate, confirm and assess the programs and services of implementers in terms of effectiveness, reach/coverage, appropriateness/relevancy including problems/difficulties in implementation.

The Biennial Conference will provide the stakeholders and the PWDs the opportunity to plan for the next remaining years of the Philippine Decade.

Conclusion:

The proclamation of the Philippine Decade of Persons with Disabilities on August 2, 2002 is again a statement of commitment by the government towards the improvement of the situation of one of the extremely marginalized sector in the country: Filipinos with disabilities. Its goal is to create an inclusive, barrier-free and rights-based society.

The Philippines as a UN ESCAP member state is one with the countries in the Asian and Pacific Region in the resolve to promote the rights of persons with disabilities.  Despite economic difficulties the country will put up its best efforts to realize the goals and targets of the Second Decade of the  Asian Pacific Region. Much more efforts have to be expended to increase awareness of the BIWAKO Millennium Framework for Action and the National Plan of Action for the Philippine Decade.  The implementation of these Decade policies requires better understanding of disability issues and of the participation of the rights of persons with disabilities by those diverse sectors of development.  It is in this regard that an effective multi-sectoral approach at the national, regional and local levels like partnership collaboration for resource sharing will be stepped up to insure that initiatives will be implemented and sustained.

The Philippines will continue to meet the challenges of resource constraints despite the legal basis installed to allocate specific funds for the implementation of the programs and projects embodied in the National Plan of Action.

To the extent possible, optimal linkage and networking both at the national and regional levels shall be pursued so that initiatives are not merely a series of isolated, micro activities of interim nature, but instead contribute to a larger effort to implement specific priority areas of the BIWAKO Millennium Framework for Action and the National Plan of Action.

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