What is inter-agency? It is something we often hear about, but do not really understand. So let me try to define it. It is really quite simple but interesting.
Inter-agency is when two or more government agencies work together to achieve a certain public purpose. Although different departments have different mandates and objectives, it is possible that the means to achieve the same overlap, are complementary, or even the same. Therefore, to avoid duplicity in program generation and implementation, it is better for the different agencies involved to join together to implement one common program.
In this way, valuable resources are maximized and more inputs become available to ensure the success of the project.
This was recently seen in the “Tara, Basa!” tutoring program of the Department of Social Welfare and Development or DSWD in partnership with the Department of Education or DepEd.
Under Executive Order or EO 221, Series of 2003, the DSWD is mandated to assist local government units, non-government organizations, other national government agencies, people’s organizations, and members of civil society in effectively creating and then implementing programs, projects, and services that will alleviate poverty and improve the quality of life for their target beneficiaries. These beneficiaries are disadvantaged individuals, families and communities.
The EO also mandates the DSWD to implement other statutory and specialized programs which are directly lodged with it and/or are not yet devolved to LGUs.
The tutoring program aims to connect with college students from low-income families who will get the chance to earn money by participating in this initiative. Per the DSWD, the 20-day program, which is implemented in partnership with the DepEd, gives participating students P570 per day as tutors and Youth Development Workers or YDW.
The immediate beneficiaries of the program are struggling non-readers who are incoming second graders. Non-reader students are those who cannot read or comprehend what is being read. In addition, the YDW program also directs the holding of sessions with parents and guardians on effective parenting topics, such as the dynamics of the Filipino family, the stages of child development, and children’s rights. The parents of participating learners get P235 per day in cash aid.
On the other hand, Republic Act 9155, otherwise known as the Governance of Basic Education Act of 2001, mandates the DepEd to formulate, implement, and coordinate policies, plans, programs, and projects in the areas of formal and non-formal basic education.
DepEd also supervises all elementary and secondary education institutions, including alternative learning systems, both public and private; and provides for the establishment and maintenance of a complete, adequate, and integrated system of basic education relevant to the goals of national development.
After the 20-day tutoring program, DepEd will conduct a post-test initiative to measure if the learners were able to gain knowledge in reading. And as can be gleaned from the post-event evaluation study already undertaken, DepEd has shown itself to be true to its mandate of supervising alternative learning systems, both public and private. This is a great gauge of the success of the tutoring project, not only for the target learners, but for the volunteers as well.
This is also an encouraging sign for our government. Due to the many areas in society which require government intervention and official attention, it is a welcome sight that two agencies are working together, pooling resources, time, and talent to achieve their respective mandates, which at the bottom is poverty alleviation, an empowered citizenry, and nation building.
I sincerely wish and look forward to more collaborations such as this among government agencies, as it is an uplifting example of inter-agency cooperation to achieve a common public goal. Cheers to those who tirelessly work to make this collaboration true.