highlights
Newsletter of the Union of Local Authorities of the Philippines
ULAP Expands Program Partnerships for Local Governments
April 2014
President’s Message
The Union of Local Authorities of the Philippines (ULAP) in its continuing service to local governments has cultivated program partnerships to converge the work of national government, private and civil society sector with local governments units (LGUs). From 2011 onwards, ULAP is able to expand its portfolio of mainstreaming, scaling up, and advocacy of programs to and for local governments, so that projects that have been tested in pilot runs may reach more interested LGUs.
Since the start of our service in ULAP in 2011, we have significantly improved the organization in terms of its relevance to its member leagues and the national government, its scope and quality of partnerships, and performance of plans and programs. Dahil nagsama-sama tayo, mahusay nating nagawa ang ating mandatong pagsilbihan ang ating mga lokal na pamahalaan.
HEALTH
What we have achieved is a result of our convergence among the leagues. We have worked closer than ever, especially in light of the emergency situations that befell our country in 2013. Our united voices have made impact in representing our voices in national agenda, such as what we have seen in the passage of the Sin Tax Law, our representation in the Board of PhilHealth, in the Joint Memorandum Circulars we have developed with national agencies, and our quick and effective response to the relief and recovery operations for Typhoon Yolanda-affected areas.
In 2011, ULAP co-organized the formation of the 162-52 Coalition for Accelerating Collective Action to Achieve Maternal and Child Health, with the Department of Health (DOH), Zuellig Family Foundation (ZFF), Access Health International, PhilHealth, Sanofi Philippines, Philippine Business for Social Progress, League of Provinces of the Philippines, and 30 more organizations all over the country. As Co-Chair, ULAP serves as the Coalition’s Secretariat to assist the convergence of various programs of the member organizations for implementation in priority LGUs. In its formal launch in 2012, the health Coalition conducted a Health Summit which convened the local chief executives and DOH officers of 30 provinces with the highest maternal mortality rates. These 30 provinces became the first batch of priority areas for the Coalition, which was swiftly followed by the second batch of municipalities following the 609 priority areas identified by the national government and supported by the Health Leadership and Governance Program (HLGP) of ZFF. The HLGP will be scaled up to cover cities and more provinces in 2014 onwards. The Coalition has engaged the DILG Local Government Academy for the “Health Governance” and “Bridging Leadership” module develop-
We journey on with much hope and determination as we push through with our partnerships with private and civil society sectors. We will continue our work even more rigorously, and achieve inclusive growth in the level of the local governments, in line with the national government’s vision. Mabuhay at maraming salamat!