INDUSTRY
When Ancestry Meets Technology written by: ATT Y. LEO ERNESTO THOMAS G. ROMERO, CPA
I
t’s a familiar scene in bureaucracy: stacks of ledgers, receipts, and forms all piled high, awaiting reconciliation. The promise of transparency relies on the dedication of civil servants who work tirelessly, even as they navigate an outdated system. In this world of endless paperwork and bureaucratic imperfections, trust remains an elusive currency, especially in the monitoring of royalties owed to the Indigenous Peoples (IP) in the Philippines. Over the last ten transparency reports, the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP) has aimed to oversee royalties from mining companies to Indigenous Cultural Communities and Indigenous Peoples (ICC/IP). But inconsistencies in record-keeping and gaps in data submissions from Regional Off ices have hindered full transparency, leading to concerns from the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI). Such a situation necessitates collaborative solutions, and amid these administrative hurdles, a possible breakthrough is poised to transition from theory to application. Blockchain provides a means to rebuild conf idence in the system.
WHAT IS BLOCKCHAIN? Before exploring its potential benef its, it is important to understand what blockchain is. It is a decentralized digital ledger that records transactions across a distributed network. Once an entry is conf irmed, it becomes part of a chain of data blocks that cannot be altered or erased. This feature makes it an ideal tool for ensuring transparency. Unlike traditional databases that rely on a central authority, blockchain ensures that all records remain intact and verif iable, making it particularly valuable for monitoring. To illustrate, picture a large household where several siblings receive allowances from their
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parents. Initially, the eldest siblings manage the distribution and monitoring of the allowances. But without a def inite record, disputes may arise. To prevent this, the siblings decide to keep a shared notebook where fund movement is recorded and monitored. However, this paperbased system quickly proves impractical since pages can be lost or altered. Making sure that everyone has an identical and upto-date copy is also impossible. Now, imagine replacing this notebook with a system that automatically records transactions in real time and prevents any changes. This is what blockchain
does. It acts as a shared, tamperproof ledger, ensuring that every participant has an identical copy of the records. Unlike traditional record-keeping, where a single person controls the f iles, blockchain eliminates the risk of unauthorized changes. A useful analogy is a shared Excel f ile. In a standard spreadsheet, the f ile owner can still edit past entries, change permissions, or even delete the f ile entirely. With blockchain, every entry locks once recorded and cannot be changed, even by the person who added it. Instead of relying on a single person, everyone in the network maintains ISSUE 1, 2025 – www.philippine-resources.com