Department of Budget and Management (DBM) Secretary Amenah Pangandaman on Friday emphasized the importance of active citizen participation in attaining the government’s agenda for prosperity.

During the District Conference of the Rotary International District 3800 in Mandaluyong City, Pangandaman said a whole-of-nation approach is key to transforming the country into a “Bagong Pilipinas” (New Philippines).

“After two decades in public service, I can attest to you that it is indeed with citizen participation, coupled with initiatives on transparency, accountability, and digitalization, that the government can better deliver public services that have a concrete, felt, and transformative impact,” she said, as quoted in a news release on Saturday.

She said the Marcos administration, through Executive Order 31 issued in 2023, has institutionalized the Philippine Open Government Partnership (PH-OGP) to ensure that open government values are embedded in policies and programs across all government agencies.

The PH-OGP also developed a “more ambitious and citizen-empowered” National Action Plan (NAP) and has expanded the open governance space through the conduct of the OGPinas! National advocacy campaign in various regions, she said.

“What we do in OGP is therefore very unique and important. We put emphasis on building a high-trust society by promoting transparency, participatory, and accountability measures at all levels of the bureaucracy and in partnership with civil society,” Pangandaman said.

“And through the active engagement of our citizens, including you, our dear Rotarians, I am confident that we can make any initiative as strong and inclusive as it could ever be.”

She noted that the DBM, along with the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), would also be implementing the Support and Assistance Fund to Participatory (SAFP) Budgeting with a PHP1 billion allotment under the 2024 national budget.

The SAFP budget, she said, would be anchored on “active citizen participation.”

“The unique aspect of this program is that we will be partnering with local civil society organizations in identifying lagging municipalities to be provided with safely managed and resilient water supply and sanitation services,” she said, as she invited Rotarians to take part in the process.

Pangandaman also cited the importance of exemplifying the Rotarian motto of “Service Above Self” in delivering quality public services to all Filipinos and in instilling game-changing reforms throughout the budget cycle.

Rotary International District 3800 is composed of Rotarians from the “Resilient District” – the cities of Malabon, Navotas, Caloocan, Valenzuela, Marikina, Pasig, San Juan, Mandaluyong, and the province of Rizal.

The DBM is also promoting sound fiscal management and bureaucratic efficiency through the adoption of a Public Financial Management (PFM) Reforms Roadmap and a Digital Budget Management Roadmap that would cover strategies and goals from 2024 to 2028. (PNA)