LEGAL FRAMEWORK OF THE

GENDER AND DEVELOPMENT

PROGRAM IN THE PHILIPPINES
 The 1987
Philippine Constitution

The paramount law of the land defines the:

structure, policies, roles & duties
of the government and its agencies

Important Provisions include:

Social justice and Human rights (Article XIII)

Bill of rights (Article III)
Right to Education (Article XIV)
Right to Education
Education is a constitutional right under Article XIV of the 1987 Constitution (Sec. 1-5)
“ No one should be deprived of education regardless of one's gender, social, status, religion, etc”

According to Fr. Joaquin Bernas, the three principal characteristics of the educational system
that the State must promote and protect are:

(Aguirre, 2022)
 Section 2 Provisions include:
• Free and compulsory primary education
• Scholarship grants to qualified students
• Non-formal education, informal and vocational courses

This paved way to the following laws:

(Aguirre, 2022)
Section 3 Aims to inculcate patriotism, nationalism and love of humanity by learning:
∙ The Constitution
∙ The NSTP
∙ The Rizal manuscript
∙ The Araling Panlipunan
∙ Religion Subject with approval from parents

Related Laws:

D.O. 13, series of 1998 or the Revised Rules and Regulation on the Teaching of religion in
Public Elementary and Secondary Schools

R.A. No. 1425 or the Rizal Law including in the curricula of all public and private schools, colleges
and universities courses on the life, works and writings of Jose Rizal.

(Aguirre, 2022)
Sec. 4 Provisions include:
∙ Regulation of educational institution
∙ Ownership of educational institution
∙ Non-taxable budgets for education

This is why we have Ranking in the DepEd

The Department of Education also initiated D.O No. 8 series 2010

(Aguirre, 2022)
Sec. 5 Provisions include:
• Planning in educational program to ensure relevance of education to society needs
• Academic freedom (set policies) in higher learning
• Right to choose a course of study
• Professional advancement for teachers
• Highest budget priority to education

This paved way to the following laws:

(Aguirre, 2022)
 Fact: The Philippines continues to lead as the most gender-equal
country in Asia with a 79.1 percent gender parity based on the 2023 Global
Gender Gap Index Report by the World Economic Forum (Cervantes, 2024).

Despite of this, the gender situation in the Philippines is characterized by sharp contradictions
women’s advancement in prostituted women,
politics, academic and
professional excellence, and = battered wives,
economically disadvantaged women
even legislation exploited migrant workers

The inclusion of gender equality in the 1987 constitution reflects the long standing struggle to eliminate
discrimination. This is why it is relevant to study the laws that pertains to gender equality.
The 1987 Constitution states two prominent provisions:

Article XIII Section 14

Article II Section 14 "The state shall protect working women
by providing safe and healthful working
"The State recognizes the role conditions taking into account their
of women in nation-building maternal functions, and such facilities
and shall ensure the and opportunities that will enhance their
fundamental equality before welfare and enable them to realize their
the law of women and men." full potential in the service of the nation"
(Guillano, 2014) (Balladares, 2015).

• Notice that these two provisions promote participation of women in nation building.
And from these two provisions also, other laws are being enacted.
 1987 Philippine Constitution
Article II Section 14
Article XIII Section 14

Beijing Platform CEDAW

Philippine Development Plan for Gender

and Development 1995-2025 Republic Act 9710

General Appropriations Act Republic Act 7192

(chart by Aduan)
REPUBLIC ACT 7192
Women in Development and Nation Building Act
(February 12, 1992 under President Corazon Aquino)

The hallmark of legislation in the

Philippines for government to incorporate
women’s gender concerns in development
agenda. It aims to promote the integration of
women as full and equal partners of men in
development and nation building (NEDA, 2020).
 Domestic Role of Women in the Philippine Society

BEFORE:
The Filipina in early days is someone who is overly
religious, submissive, and obedient. To their husbands.
Women was expected to take care of the domestic tasks,
go to church, bear and educate children, and support her
man in his political, professional, and economic
endeavors. (Samson, 2015).

PRESENT: Arranged marriage forces many girls to quit 9.7% of girls ages 15
school. It may also lead to early pregnancy, forcing girls to to19 are already
become mothers when they’re not yet ready. Such married or in some
conditions can make them vulnerable to abuse, sexually kind of union
transmitted diseases, and childbirth problems. Arranged
marriages can negatively impact a child's psychological,
emotional, and physical well-being. It disrupts education,
health, and basically, childhood (Save the Children).
 In the culture that we grow up we adopt the belief that man is more superior to women.
And this is the very reason why we need to promote gender equality and women
empowerment, paving the way to the provisions of the RA 7192 which are:

∙ equal access to membership in all social Civic and recreational Club

∙ as well as the right of the admission into military.
∙ equal capacity as men to borrow and obtain loans
∙ equal rights in agrarian reforms and resettlement programs
∙ equal rights to act as incorporations and insurance contract
∙ married women’s equal rights with men in applying for passports, secure visas and
other travel documents without spouse’s content

To ensure participation of women in nation building, they should be recipients of foreign aid
grants and loans. And the NEDA is the one being tasks to implement this policy (NEDA, 2020).
REPUBLIC ACT 7192 and its implications to education

Gender and Development (GAD) Program under the Department of Education

⮚ Gender awareness
⮚ Orientation on the use of lesson exemplars on GAD
⮚ Preparing action plan and training to educators
⮚ Development of monitoring and evaluation scheme for GAD programs (Santos,
2016).

⮚ Equal Employment Opportunity Principle under the Civil Service Commission

(DepEd RO1, 2021).
 Philippine Plan for Gender-responsive Development 1995-2025 (PPGD)
(September 08, 1995 through Executive Order 273 by President Fidel V. Ramos)

* 30-year perspective plan that outlines

the policies, strategies, programs and
projects that the government must
adopt to enable women to participate in
and benefit from national development
(Echon, 2016.)
 It aims to alter the traditional concept of woman’s self-worth as being
subordinate to men. (Echon, 2016) by giving equal opportunities under the PPGD
programs, which are based on international trends.

PPGD
GLOBAL TRENDS

⮚ Improved participation in government projects

⮚ Increased rescue to trafficked victims
⮚ Safer workplaces for women
⮚ Improved women’s access to job
 PPGD Summary of Vision in relation to global trends (NEDA,2020):

1. Population, markets and growth. Provide women decent life that promotes peace and social justice.
2. Technology. Streaming women into innovative high-technology levels of knowledge for employment equality.
3. Media and culture. Recognize the role of women as part of decision making and foster respect.
4. Movements of labor and capital and the new international division of labor. Calls for the improvement of wages
that means, same rate for work of equal value.
5. Megacities and the family. Women’s participation in production sector in cities enabling them to draw decision
making for their future.
6. Women’s health and reproductive technologies. Women should have informed choice and informed to health
services
7. Physical and environment and biodiversity. Protection of habitat and conservation of biodiversity for both men
and women.
8. Social movements and civil society. Women’s movement on democratic, participatory and empowering
processes.
9. Erosion of nation-states and retribalization. Provide spaces for women’s movement.
 PPGD Key Objectives for the Education Sector (Barrago, 2021):

1. Gender equality and elimination of all forms of gender bias in all aspect of learner’s development.

2. Including celebrations in school calendar such as Women’s Month, LGBT Pride month, among others.

3. Enhancing and promote a K to 12 curriculums that integrate gender equality, human rights, sexuality and
reproductive health among others.

4. Ensuring minimum standards on gender sensitivity that will be integrated in the subjects.

5. Provision for equitable access of women to services and opportunities

6. Raising general consciousness regarding women’s gender concerns.

7. Designing gender-responsive models of instructions appropriate for all types of learners.

8. Ensuring development and capacity building, through in service trainings in coordination with NEAP.

* The PPGD is actually translated under DepEd order No. 32, series of 2017
 PPGD is a base law for two other laws: the General Appropriations Act and the Magna Carta of

Women.

Philippine Plan for Gender-responsive

Development 1995-2025

General Appropriations Act

Magna Carta of Women

General Appropriations Act (GAA)

The General Appropriations Act (GAA) is one of the most

important legislations that Congress annually passes. It defines
the annual expenditure program of the national government and
all of its instrumentalities. The expenditure program includes all
programs and projects that are supposed to be funded out of
government funds for the year (Pep.net.org, 2006).
Example of GAA

1987
constitution
Article XIV,
Section 5,
Paragraph 5:
“The State shall
assign the highest
budgetary
priority to
education..”

(DBM, 2023).
Annual General Appropriations Act (GAA)

The General Appropriations Act mandate

national government agencies as well as local
government units to prepare an annual gender and
development or GAD plan and budget. It is a
systematically designed set of programs projects and
activities and shall address specific gender issues and
concerns and GAD mandate of an organization. It
requires all departments, bureaus, offices and agencies
to set aside 5% of their total budget for gender and
development concerns. This was institutionalized
under Executive Order 273 (University of the
Philippines, 2021).
* 5% of agency budget for gender-
responsive projects
-this has been an important feature of the annual
GAA and further strengthened by the Magna Carta of
Women (RA 9710)
 REPUBLIC ACT 9710 (The Magna Carta of Women)
- A comprehensive women's human rights law

∙ It implements the Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination

against Women (CEDAW), which seeks to eliminate discrimination
by dismantling social structures.
∙ Strengthens the Philippine Commission on Women

(Almo, 2013)
It uses gender mainstreaming as means to implement laws.

⮚ Considering both needs of male and female

Slideserve.com
Magna Carta of Women uses Gender streaming to
implement laws. It takes into account the needs and
concerns of a gender. An example of this is the night
work prohibition for women. Under the old Labor
Code, women were prohibited from engaging in night
work. The aforementioned provisions of the Labor
Code seemingly undermine gender equality and
deprived women of equal opportunities of
employment. Recognizing this reality, The Philippine
Legislature passed June 2011 Republic Act No.
10151, An Act Allowing the Employment of Night
Workers. Hence, women in the Business Process And I owe from this law
Outsourcing is becoming a trend nowadays specially the privilege to work in
for solo parents who need to provide for their children the BPO industry on
while assuming maternal roles. graveyard shift at present.
(ndvlaw.com).
The Magna Carta of Women aims to:
1. Abolish discrimination against women by recognizing protecting fulfilling
and upholding the rights of Filipino women particularly those in
marginalized communities.
2. Seeks to protect from any forms of violence against women and any
gender related offenses including those committed by the state
3. Equal treatment before the law
4. Access of necessities, services, opportunities and privileges
5. Protect indigenous women and their cultural heritage, health and safety
of senior citizen’s women from marginalized sectors and girl children.

(Almo, 2013)
Republic Act 9710 and the education sector

⮚ Provision for equal access and elimination of discrimination in education, scholarships, and training

⮚ Enrollment of women in nontraditional skills training in vocational and tertiary levels shall be encouraged

⮚ expulsion, non-readmission, prohibiting enrollment, and other related discrimination of women students and
faculty due to pregnancy out of marriage shall be outlawed.

⮚ requiring the use of non-sexist language in common day-to-day activities, such as preparing textbooks or
lessons and office issuances, to avoid implicit and explicit discriminatory language against women, thereby
helping promote gender-sensitivity (CSC Memorandum Circular No. 12, Series of 2005)
 Gender and Development laws are passed and implemented by the
Philippine government in order that we as a nation achieved
development that is:

∙ Participatory and empowering

∙ Equitable and sustainable
∙ Free from violence
∙ Respectful of human rights
∙ Supportive of self-determination and actualization of human potentials
Men and Women in equality;
Endowed with the same
Dignity.