Governance

This summary is part of a research project carried out between March and October 2006 in support of the International Institute for Communication and Development (IICD), one of The Communication Initiative (The CI)'s partners.

According to this case study, in the late 1980s, Naga City was in a state of economic decline characterised by a large municipal deficit, high unemployment, low business confidence, and little government accountability or transparency. However, incoming Mayor Jesse Robredo believed in the potential of information technologies to contribute towards a more inclusive and effective governance model. Once in office, he supported the development of internet (i)-Governance initiatives giving citizens greater access to decision-making processes and engaging them in civic affairs, programmes based on the premise that increased citizen participation in governance results in greater government accountability and responsiveness and fuels innovation.

In 2001, the i-Governance Program was launched and presented a new framework for addressing local governance challenges. In addition to incorporating the city’s Information and Communications Technology Development Program (ICT-DEV) that in 1995 had computerised all key city government activities and established a local population database, the i-Governance Program placed even greater emphasis on citizen participation in issues of governance.

The i-Governance Program aims to achieve:

• inclusive governance;
• information openness;
• interactive engagement; and
• innovative management.

The following Naga City government projects operationalise the i-Governance Program:

Naga.gov

The municipal government’s redesigned website, Naga.gov, works to provide citizens and visitors with accurate and relevant information on the city’s profile, statistics, tourist attractions, investment possibilities, and also provides downloadable tables and maps.

Netserve

Aimed at a diversity of city residents and investors, NetServe is an online component of Naga.gov that provides response time and detailed procedural and contact information for city government services; city financial information; bidding and public offering postings; a directory of city officials; and ordinances and resolutions. This project works to ensure that all citizens are afforded equal access to services and opportunities.

Textserve

Textserve allows citizens to send text-based queries and feedback from their cellular phones to the city government at low cost and receive same-day response and appropriate action directed to the relevant agency. Citizens are regularly using TextServe to register their complaints and comments on city policies, programmes, and services.

Naga City Citizens Charter

The city government has developed the Naga City Citizens Charter for citizens lacking internet access. Describing key city government services, the guidebook presents a comprehensive how-to for accessing government services.

According to the authors, significant gains have been made through the i-Governance Program. These include:

• Improvements in local finances in the form of increased local revenues able to sustain Naga City growth and a reduction in operating costs through improved productivity;
• Reduction in procurement costs due to ICT-DEV and i-Governance transparency mechanisms for city procurement, bidding, and awards;
• Increased efficiency and effectiveness in service delivery due to process streamlining and application computerisation.

As a result of these achievements, the Philippine Chamber of Commerce selected Naga as the country’s “Most Business-Friendly City” in 2002. At the household level, these programmes have contributed to family incomes considerably higher than the national average.

Government agencies are constantly reminded of the requirement to streamline and improve efficiency through the public posting of Naga City’s budget on the internet. This streamlining of personnel services has enabled the city government to channel a greater proportion of funds into programming.