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| Komisyon sa Kababaihan ng Pilipinas | |
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| Agency overview | |
|---|---|
| Formed | January 7, 1975 |
| Jurisdiction | Government of the Philippines |
| Headquarters | 1145 J.P. Laurel St.,San Miguel, Manila, Philippines |
| Employees | 74 (2024)[1] |
| Annual budget | ₱140.32 million (2023)[2] |
| Agency executives | |
| Parent agency | Department of the Interior and Local Government |
| Website | www.pcw.gov.ph |
ThePhilippine Commission on Women (PCW), formerly theNational Commission on the Role of the Filipino Women, is a Philippine government agency that is responsible for promoting and protecting the rights of thewomen in the Philippines. It was established on January 7, 1975, through Presidential Decree No. 633.
On August 14, 2009, the Magna Carta of Women was signed into law providing better protection for women. According to the United Nations' 2009 Human Development Report, the Philippines is 40th out of 155 nations when the gender-related development index is compared directly to the human development index, While theWorld Economic Forum'sGlobal Gender Gap Report for 2009 lists the country at a ranking 9 among of about 130 countries.[5]
On July 4, 2016, PCW was among the 12 agencies, formerly from the Office of the President reassigned to theOffice of the Cabinet Secretary, based on Executive Order No. 1 issued by PresidentRodrigo Duterte.[6] On October 31, 2018, through Executive Order No. 67, the commission, along with theNational Commission on Muslim Filipinos and theNational Youth Commission, was transferred from the Office of the Cabinet Secretary to theDepartment of the Interior and Local Government.
The Commission initially established as an advisory body to thePresident and the Cabinet on policies and programs for the advancement of women. It is mandated"to review, evaluate, and recommend measures, including priorities to ensure the full integration of women for economic, social and cultural development at national, regional and international levels, and to ensure further equality between women and men.[7]
The aims of the organization included the following:
The commission was established by PresidentFerdinand Marcos on January 7, 1975, with the intention of promoting the rights of women. After thePeople Power Revolution, which installedCorazon Aquino into power, in 1986, the agency focused on women's concerns on policymaking in the government. This included the integration of the principle ofgender equality in the 1987Philippine Constitution.[7]
During this period Philippine Development Plan for Women (PDPW) (1989–1992) was adopted through Executive Order No. 348. Shortly after, the "Women in Nation-Building Act" (RA 7192) was enacted, which promotes "the integration of women as full and equal partners of men in development and nation-building". A campaign, supported by the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA), was initiated to help government officials and staff with training in promoting equality under a program calledGender and Development (GAD).[citation needed]
The Commission continued to push for stronger policies and programs on gender equality, with projects such as the Philippine Plan for Gender-Responsive Development (PPGD) (from 1995 to 2025), a 30-year perspective plan that outlines the policies that enable women to participate benefit from national development. It was the country's main vehicle for implementing the 1995Beijing Declaration andPlatform for Action (BPfA) adopted at the1995 UN Fourth World Conference on Women.[citation needed]
Since 1998, the commission's focus has been onpoverty alleviation, along with the advancement and protection of women's human rights, promoting women's economic empowerment, and promoting gender-responsive governance.[citation needed]
On August 14, 2009, Philippine PresidentGloria Macapagal Arroyo signed Republic Act 9710, also known as the Magna Carta of Women. Under the law, the "National Commission on the Role of Filipino Women" would be renamed the "Philippine Commission on Women". It will give way to the creation of the Gender Ombudsman under theCommission on Human Rights that will specifically handlewomen's rights concerns. The law will also provide penalties for the violation of the provisions of the magna carta.[8]
Features of the law include:
The Magna Carta of Women guarantees the rights of women, including farmers andrural workers,informal sector workers and theurban poor,indigenous women, and those with disabilities, as well as older women and girls. These guarantees rights that include those involving food security, affordable and secure housing, employment, the recognition and preservation of cultural identity, and to women's inclusion in discussions pertaining to development and peace issues.[9]
Republic Act No. 11313, known as the Safe Spaces Act or the "Bawal Bastos Law", authored by SenatorRisa Hontiveros, was signed into law by PresidentRodrigo Duterte on April 17, 2019.[10] Its implementing rules and regulations was signed by Hontiveros in October that year. The act aims to reform laws and policies surroundinggender-based street and public spacesharassment, both offline and online.[11]
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The functions of the Commission include the institution of gender responsiveness in national development plans, by preparing, assessing, and updating the National Plan for Women and by ensuring its implementation and monitoring its performance among the government agencies it is involved with. It also undertakes the advocacy of promoting economic, social and politicalempowerment of women by providing technical assistance in the strengthening of mechanisms on gender mainstreaming. Aside from this, the Commission ensures contributions by Filipino women toPhilippine culture and traditions be preserved and enhanced in the process of modernization.[7]
The commission also coordinates with the provisions of the NCRFW by preparing plans for the development of the lives women, with continuous monitoring and assessment with the cooperation of relevant agencies. It also provides a database for information relating to women. Other activities include: gender-consciousness awareness programs, policy studies, legislation reviews that integrate women's concerns, technical services that ensure the development of institutional capabilities for gender and development (GAD) mainstreaming in government agencies and selected partners, monitoring and assessment of the implementation of laws and policies on women including the implementation of international conventions such as theBeijing Platform for Action, and the implementation of pilot projects for the delivery of services for women as basis for policy formulation and program recommendations.[12]
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