Local Government Revenue Generation and Land Administration Reforms Project (REGALA)

Project Narrative

The objective of the project was to expand the delivery of economic and social services in participating LGUs. The project provided grants on a competitive selection basis to nine LGUs to initiate, implement and institutionalise focused interventions and processes leading to reforms in local land administration and management in certain locations and improved service delivery at the provincial, city or municipal level.

Participating LGUs will use the improved land management and administration systems, including property valuation and taxation innovations, to generate increased local government revenues and improve service delivery in specific areas. The project builds on strong inter-agency partnerships at the national and local levels as well as between the national and sub-national agencies and LGUs. This innovative and “whole of government” approach can be summarised as follows:

• A total of nine LGUs will implement their respective programs immediately after selection.
• In line with the clustering of development, two mature LGUs will serve as good practice models – acting as the “apex” of the LGU training network. These mature LGUs will only be provided with experts’ inputs, training and capability building.
• Assistance will be given to seven beneficiary LGUs in terms of experts’ inputs, equipment provision and training on selected land administration and management technologies. These LGUs are required to provide at least 25% counterpart funds.

The project featured innovation, a partnership model, and a sustainability approach. The LEI project team continually provided stakeholders with information and venues for assessing the lessons and results. A key to success was that the reforms at the local level were demand driven. The selection criteria used for determining the grants identified LGUs which were committed and capable of taking maximum advantage of the project, and were willing to become demonstration models to assist other nearby LGUs.

Key services provided

The contract was held by LEI in association with our affiliate LETS (Philippines). LEI was responsible for contract management, client relationship and delivery of outputs, and overall project management, including financial management, work planning and performance management. LEI’s project director was also responsible for 6 monthly project reviews and technical advice on further innovations and best practices.

LEI provided, on a demand driven basis, overall guidance and advice, training, access to resources and transfer of innovative technology and know how. This included the following:

• Revenue Systems –provided an integrated computerized system for tax and revenue collection – the Enhanced Tax Revenue Assessment System (ETRACS).
• Geographic Information System – provided a Unified Land Information System (GIS-ULIS). Combined the spatial and textual land related information from various national government agencies, the Unified Land Information System underpins the real property tax and business revenue systems and is well structured to support through imaging and GIS functions, other land management functions of the LGUs including physical planning, disaster management and social mapping. At the core of the system is the Digital Cadastral Data Base (DCDB).
• Land Administration and Management System (LAMS) – Provided the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) and LGUs with an information system framework for the continual integration of the whole of government land information. This promoted the sharing of spatial, textual, imaging and other land related data.
• Valuation Database Information System (VDIS) – This sales system was used by Assessors to assist in preparing and explaining a new general revision of the Schedule of Market Values.
• Land Management and Investment Planning – Mature LGUs were assisted in updating and revising their Comprehensive Land Use Plans (CLUP) and their Comprehensive Investment Plan. Unified land information system outputs from digital cadastral database (DCDB) thematic maps allowed LGU’s to formulate a physical framework for land use and development, prioritize interventions, programs and projects to attain these plans.
• Land Tenure Profiling – provided assistance in land tenure profiling. Assisted LGU’s to prepare a land records inventory to determine the extent of government owned lands, titled and untitled lands