Tracking Progress: Accomplishments and Shortfalls in Local Social Development

Social Watch Philippines Monitoring Report 2003 This report is part of the continuing initiative of Social Watch Philippines (SWP) to monitor the commitments made by the Philippine Government during world conferences and to measure actual progress towards the agreed goals and targets by highlighting the situation in selected local areas in the Philippines. Through this, SWP likewise intends to substantiate development trends in the country by presenting the progress and shortfalls in social development at local level. The presentations relied primarily on the monitoring activities undertaken by the Social Watch networks in designated pilot areas. This report is divided into two parts. The first part is a presentation of a set of key indicators that highlight the trends and achievements made in each of the selected study areas. Case studies were done to provide deeper insights concerning specific local issues and concerns. Development plans were also reviewed to assess whether clear targets were set and appropriate strategies developed to ensure that the commitments made are translated into operational plans. Finally, local budgets were evaluated to analyze the investments made by local government towards reducing poverty and improving social development. The second part contains the statistical annex which presents key social development indicators at the national, regional and provincial levels. Where available, figures have been broken down to show disparities in performance based on location, gender and income group. The annex also presents key indicators for countries in the Asian region to assess how the Philippines performed compared to its Asian neighbors. By and large, progress in social development has been partial and largely uneven. Accomplishments in some areas have been minimal, while other areas experienced actual reversals. Moreover, inequalities persist and have actually increased over time. Clearly, more efforts are needed to meet the basic targets. As time may be running short, advocacy must be heightened to prompt government to put up, scale up and speed up or be left out in the development march. CONTENTS: The Social Watch Monitoring System: The template and modules Module I - Monitoring Template of Key Social Indicators Module II - Assessment of Special Concerns Module III - Quality of Life Index Module IV - Review of Local Development Plan Module V - Analysis of the Local Budget Social Watch Monitoring: Provincial Reports Nueva Ecija Camarines Sur Guimaras Negros Oriental Cotabato Critical Review of Local Development Planning and Budgeting LOCAL DEVELOPMENT PLANS: Making Good On Social Commitments? Critical Review of Development Planning and Budgeting Nueva Ecija Camarines Sur Guimaras Dumaguete Cotabato The Case Studies Nueva Ecija - A Case Study On Mobilizing Local Resources For Family Planning In Northern Nueva Ecija Camarines Sur - LGU Practices on Managing Health Information System Iloilo City (Guimaras group) - Quality of Employment and Urbanization: The Case of Iloilo City Dumaguete (Negros Oriental) - Partnership with CSO/NGOs Cotabato - The Tulunan Peace Zones Statistical Annex , Part 2