THE Budget Tracking towards Transparent and Accountable Governance (Bitag) will be launched Wednesday in Davao City with Local Government Secretary Jesse Robredo expected to grace the affair.
The local budget tracking project is made under the Transparent Accountable Governance program of the Asia Foundation with the support of the United States Agency for International Development and the Mindanao Coalition of Development NGO Networks (MinCode) and Balay Mindanaw Foundation as implementing partners.
Robredo, during the launching, will stress the importance of "stakeholdership" in effecting transparency and accountability in local government finance with the aim of delivering the maximum basic services to its constituents.
The Bitag project is in line with President Benigno Aquino III's vision of good governance which is transparency and accountability. However, this aspect cannot be done by the government alone but with the involvement of others in the civil society organization.
According to project manager Paul Richard Paraguya of the BMFI, the Bitag project is not a budget watch but rather an effort to improve transparency and accountability and institute policy advocacy.
Aside from Robredo, the Davao launching will be attended by Dr. Maria Rendon, acting chief of the Office of Economic Development and Governance, USAid Philippines; Dr. Steven Rood, TAF country representative, Andrea Patricia Mangrobang-Sarenas, chair of MinCode and Sarangani Governor Miguel Dominguez. (PIA 11)