Democracy and governance and cross-sectoral linkages : Philippines

The study shows that cross-sectoral linkages between DG and other sectors in USAID/Philippines have evolved more extensively and successfully than in any other Mission studied in the series. They have been a function of the interplay among the uniquely conducive host country context created by the 1991 Local Government Code; USAID"s commitment, through the Governance and Local Democracy (GOLD) Project and its predecessors, to support the Philippine Government"s effort to implement the Code; and reduced Mission staff and budget resources. Against the backdrop of declining resources, the Code"s devolution of authority and responsibility to the local level has provided a natural context by which the Mission could promote democratic governance and sectoral objectives at the same time. When cross-sectoral linkages have been established, the results have been impressive. Concrete collaborations between DG and health, population and nutrition (HPN), economic growth (EG), and, most particularly, the environment (ENV) have helped create new relationships between local officials and their constituents. In some cases, such activities have provided the contexts within which local governments have begun to internalize and institutionalize basic democratic principles, such as transparency, accountability, and participation. There also appears to be a positive correlation between performance in a technical sector and the credibility and effectiveness of elected local officials. The Governors of Capiz, Nueva Vizcaya, Bohol, and Sarangani emphasized that their elections and re-elections were based on their promise or record of accomplishments in environmental management, health, and other areas. In this sense, cross-sectorally linked programs may be helping to promote a shift away from traditional patron-client, "big man" government to more responsive performance- based government. The future remains uncertain, however. "Imperial Manila" is still very much in evidence, and agents of recentralization pose a continuing threat to the hard-won gains achieved under the Code. Additionally, it is unclear what effect the Mission"s October 1999 decision to fold its free-standing DG strategic objective into the economic growth, environment, and health sectors will have. If implemented successfully, it could build on and even accelerate the momentum created by the interplay between Project GOLD and, for example, the Coastal Resources Management Project. But if things go badly, it could have a chilling effect on the very synergistic results it seeks to achieve and, more immediately, on USAID"s ongoing ability to support democratic decentralization in the Philippines.