A pleasant afternoon to everyone.  

Assalamu alaikum wa Raḥmatullahi wa Barakatuh.   

First, I would like to thank our esteemed resource speaker, our very own former DBM Secretary Benjamin Diokno, who now serves as a member of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Monetary Board, for accepting our invitation to talk about his recently published book.   

Congratulations, and welcome back to your home of many years, Sec. Ben!  

We are so grateful to have you today as your extensive and exemplary service always inspires resilience, adaptability, and hope in the face of unprecedented challenges.  

As his Assistant Governor at the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, I personally witnessed how Gov Ben led the BSP out of the pandemic. I don't think it's an understatement to say that he saved the Philippine economy during the pandemic. It is no wonder that he was named the Global and Asia-Pacific Central Banker of the Year by The Banker in 2022.  

If you want to learn how Gov Ben did it, aside from his latest book, the tribute of The Banker details how he expertly guided the BSP to fulfill its core functions, drive significant policy initiatives, and support the National Government during one of the most challenging periods in history—the COVID-19 pandemic.  

He introduced reforms that mitigated the adverse impact of the pandemic on our economy and paved the way for its early recovery. This includes accelerating digitalization, promoting financial inclusion, strengthening BSP’s internal operations and research capabilities, enhancing consumer protection, and, most importantly, fostering a stakeholder-centric approach that has moved the institution closer to the Filipino people. 

Gov. Ben was also instrumental in the modernization of the country’s banking system and invigorating the financial sector. He ensured that Philippine banks were well-capitalized and robust through the BSP’s regulatory and legislative measures.  

From this, we can learn that when asked to close our doors due to danger, we must look for windows of opportunity to adapt and thrive amidst extraordinary circumstances.   

So at this time, when the economy has been significantly impacted by the recent typhoons and severe weather conditions, discussing this book could not have been timelier. This masterpiece is not only the personal account of an incomparable leader but also an important guide for future leaders in times of crisis. 

Once again, thank you for gracing us with your presence, sir, especially during library month. Your book will certainly be another great addition to our library. 

So, as we celebrate National Library and Information Services Month, let us make the most of this golden opportunity to harness the potential of libraries to empower communities, foster inclusivity, and build resilience amidst adversities—not just this November but throughout our lives. 

Let us all listen intently to a great leader, educator, one of my mentors, and author whose insights will surely leave an indelible mark in our hearts.  

And finally, let this book serve as a reminder to engage more with our libraries and find books that will meaningfully impact our present lives and our nation’s future.   

Thank you very much.   

Wabillahi Tawfiq Wal Hidaya, Wasalamu alaikum wa rahmatullahi wa Barakatuhu.   

END 

Good morning to all the advocates and champions of open government and good governance present here today, most especially to my fellow Philippine Open Government Partnership (PH-OGP) Steering Committee (SteerCom) members.   

Assalamu alaikum wa Raḥmatullahi wa Barakatuh.  

Four months ago, we held our last quarterly meeting in Manila, and now we are here in Pampanga to continuously fulfill our commitment to uphold the Open Government principles of transparency, accountability, citizen participation, co-creation, and inclusion.    

I am proud and grateful to affirm that within a short amount of time, we reached new heights and achieved significant milestones that have positively shaped our communities.

First of all, as you know, we can be very proud to have passed the New Government Procurement Act (NGPA), updating our 20-year-old procurement law.  

I was able to report at the OGP Leaders Roundtable on the sidelines of the 79th United Nations General Assembly in September that this was signed into law last July, less than a year since we announced at the Open Government Partnership Global Summit in Tallinn, Estonia last year that we would pursue amendments to the Government Procurement Reform Act (GPRA).  

We consider this not only a milestone towards improving efficiency but an important anti-corruption measure as public procurement is one of the governance aspects most prone to corruption, especially since we allot 40 to 45 percent of our annual budget to procurement undertakings. This is just for the national government. Iba pa po ‘yung local government units, so that’s how important our procurement law is.   

It was especially noted at the OGP meeting in New York how the NGPA guarantees transparency through open contracting. Stakeholders will have access to procurement information and observers from the private sector and civil society will be invited to participate in all levels of procurement proceedings. 

The NGPA now also requires bidders to disclose beneficial ownership information to identify the ultimate owner and prevent collusion in public procurement. 

Let me also highlight that in August, a little less than a month after the enactment of this new law, we launched three innovative digital platforms to make government procurement more open, transparent, participatory, and efficient. These include the Procurement Observers’ Portal, the NGPA Microsite, and the Billy Bayong Chatbot. Through these tools, every Filipino is now empowered to monitor and engage with the government procurement process. In fact, in that portal, we are already working on the IRR. The law provided us six months to finish the IRR, but our technical staff, tatapusin po nila ‘yung IRR natin. Then, we’re going to post everything online. So we hope all our stakeholders, lahat ng partners, I hope you’ll have time to check it out para maipasok po natin ‘yung mga inputs ninyo doon sa ating IRR which is very important.  

These milestones bring to life my declaration during our 2nd quarter meeting—that public participation will be embedded at all levels of the procurement process. And I am proud to see this vision now unfolding.  

Aside from commending the NGPA at the OGP Leaders Roundtable in New York, I am also proud to share today that OGP CEO Sanjay Pradhan cited the Philippines' efforts in mainstreaming open government in its socioeconomic framework. Lagi po tayong special mention ni Sanjay sa kanyang mga speeches! 

It has not gone unnoticed that we have institutionalized OGP through an Executive Order and we even included OGP as a key strategy in our Philippine Development Plan 2023-2028. So, I would like to take this opportunity to thank our members and partners for all your work and our enthusiastic collaboration, which has reinforced the Philippines’ position as a global leader in open governance space! 

In October, we embarked on our new role of leading OGP in the region as a member of the OGP Global Steering Committee! The Philippines, represented by yours truly, started its term last October 1, and we already see the magnitude of the responsibility and the opportunity to elevate our efforts on a regional and even global scale. 

We will have a great opportunity to do just that as we host the OGP Asia and the Pacific Regional Meeting this coming February 5 to 7, 2025. We will make this the most dynamic, fruitful, and memorable OGP Regional Summit ever! In Shaa Allah!    

I think a few days before the Summit, we will hold our first face-to-face Steering Committee meeting with the new members. 

Also last October, we launched our Public Financial Management (PFM) Reforms Roadmap 2024-2028, a comprehensive blueprint for the full digitalization of PFM processes and the harmonization of PFM policies across agencies. And I’m also happy during the crafting of this, with our PEFA Assessment, we included three major topics which are also important in our advocacy and our movement. First, climate change. Second, disaster. Third, of course, gender, which Ms. Araw is working on. More than the sectors that we have been representing for the past few years, we included other areas which we can also spearhead through Open Government Partnership.  

Ultimately, this roadmap will enable us to uphold the principles of transparency and accountability by putting digital transformation at the forefront of our reform agenda. This is key to achieving our goal of having an open government that delivers more efficient and responsive public services to the Filipino people. 

We will implement the Integrated Financial Management Information System (IFMIS), which will not only foster bureaucratic efficiency through the timely and efficient management of public funds across national government agencies and instrumentalities but will also eradicate corruption through digitalization. 

Finally, just two weeks ago, at the first-ever ministerial-level International Conference on Women, Peace, and Security (ICWPS), the PH-OGP convened notable women leaders from the Judiciary, civil society, and the Bangsamoro government for a panel discussion on the integration of the WPS Agenda into the open government framework. No less than my co-chair, Ms. Araw Chavez was part of the panel in this side-event which was a resounding success. This is a testament to our commitment to ensuring a transparent, accountable, and participative governance that leads to a peaceful and prosperous nation through gender-responsive approaches. At the same event, we gave our commitment to include the WPS Agenda in our OGP Asia and the Pacific Regional Meeting next year.   

I’m sure that we are all looking forward to that and the other matters that we will be discussing today, including the PH-OGP Annual Accomplishment Report.  

So, let’s get going and make this meeting purposeful and productive. As we proceed with today’s agenda, let us keep in mind our shared aspiration for a truly open government—isang Bagong Pilipinas, kung saan ang gobyerno ay bukas at mapagkakatiwalaan at ang mga mamamayan ay pinakikinggan. 

Maraming salamat po. Wabillahi Tawfiq Wal Hidaya, Wasalamu alaikum wa rahmatullahi wa Barakatuhu. 

END