EXECUTIVE ORDER NO. 37
EXECUTIVE ORDER NO. 37 - ABOLISHING
THE CABINET COMMITTEE ON MARITIME AND OCEAN AFFAIRS (CABCOM-MOA)
WHEREAS,
the Philippines is a signatory or a party to various international
agreements on the seas and oceans. principally the 1982 United Nations
Law of the Sea Convention (LOSC) which entered into force on November
16, 1994, as well as non-binding instruments such as the Rio
Declaration and Agenda 21;
WHEREAS, the seas and oceans have in recent times continually increased
in importance as the primary source of food, minerals, petroleum and
ocean energy, and other resources, as well as the focus of many
economic uses as transportation and tourism;
WHEREAS, the present administration is resolutely committed to win the
battle against poverty in one decade and has directed all concerned
agencies to gear their programs to utilize marine and other resources
wisely and equitably towards achieving that over-arching objective;
WHEREAS, Cabinet Secretaries should do less cluster and inter-agency
committee work so that they can concentrate on running their department;
NOW, THEREFORE, I, GLORIA MACAPAGAL-ARROYO, President of the
Philippines, by virtue of the powers vested upon me by law, do hereby
order:
Section 1. The Cabinet Committee on Maritime and
Ocean Affairs. — The Cabinet Committee on Maritime and Ocean Affairs
(CABCOM-MOA) is hereby abolished. The functions thereof shall be
exercised by the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA).
Sec. 2. With regard to maritime and ocean affairs,
the DFA shall have the following functions:
a.
Oversee and coordinate the implementation of the National Marine Policy
and periodically evaluate and update it as necessary;
b. Formulate
and recommend programs and special projects to enhance the integrated
and coordinated management of maritime and ocean interests of the
Philippines, particularly in:
(1)
the protection of the archipelago, including promotion of maritime
security in relation to the national territory and maritime
jurisdictions and the development of national capabilities to preserve
and manage its marine resources;
(2) the
prevention of the degradation of the marine environment and ocean
resources through the proper management of human activities within its
maritime jurisdiction;
(3) the
development and promotion of Philippine interests in shipping,
seafaring, fisheries exploitation and extraction of mineral and energy
resources, and other ocean-based industries.
c. Identify
and develop policy options in implementing international agreements on
the oceans, as well as non-binding instruments, to which the
Philippines is a party or signatory;
d. Recommend
policies, programs, and special projects necessary to advance the
national interest and fulfill international commitments relative to the
sustainable use of ocean resources and marine scientific research;
e. Source
foreign technical and other assistance for projects, in coordination
with relevant agencies of the government on the small-scale use of
marine resources by subsistence fishermen and their associations to
further improve methods of fishing, fish-farming, aquaculture, and
marine-related industries which directly help them augment incomes
while conserving resources and protecting the environment.
f. Formulate
programs, coordinate and/or undertake activities to promote the
archipelagic consciousness in the country.
Sec. 3. Maritime and Ocean Affairs Center (MOAC).
— The Law of the Sea Secretariat under Executive Order No. 738, Series
of 1981, and designated as an attached agency of the Department of
Foreign Affairs, pursuant to Section 19, Chapter 6, Title I, Book IV of
the Revised Administrative Code of 1987, renamed, reconstituted and
established as the “Maritime and Ocean Affairs Center” under E.O. 132,
series of 1999 is hereby upgraded and expanded with the following
functions and responsibilities:
a.
Serve as the Secretariat to the Department of Foreign Affairs on
maritime and ocean affairs and provide assistance and administrative
support to the Secretary of Foreign Affairs with regard to maritime and
ocean matters;
b. Promote the
development of national capabilities and institutions including human
resources, for maritime and ocean affairs;
c. Undertake,
or cause to be undertaken, the following:
(1)
consultations with any government agency, concerned maritime and ocean
sectors, non-government organizations, academe, and/or the general
public, on any maritime related matters as may be deemed necessary;
(2) research
programs and policy studies on any and/or all maritime sectors as may
be needed including those for regulatory, governmental, strategic, or
maritime security purposes;
(3) initiate
steps to harmonize and/or update domestic legislation and rules and
regulations with international agreements or non-binding instruments to
which the Philippines is a party;
(4) research,
data gathering, information acquisition, and preparation for any
negotiation or other modes of dispute settlement with other countries
in matters concerning the delineation/delimitation of territorial and
maritime boundaries, fisheries, energy and mineral exploration, and
exploitation in the ocean, or other agreements relating to the
conservation, exploration, exploitation, protection, development,
and/or management of marine resources within the archipelagic waters,
territorial seas and exclusive economic zone as well as areas as
adjacent to the latter.
d. Create and
maintain a central database on maritime and ocean affairs, as well as
an information-gathering system in the form of the MOAC-GIS, in support
of maritime and ocean policy and decision-making and implementation;
e. Identify,
network with, and mobilize national and/or international expertise and
institutions in support of or to assist the Government in maritime and
ocean policy and decision making and implementation;
f. Undertake,
or cause to be undertaken, activities necessary to raise the national
archipelagic consciousness and communicate, and publicize in a
coordinated manner, national maritime and ocean interests and issues;
g. Coordinate
the participation of the appropriate agencies of government in
international fora, meetings, and conferences that are relevant to the
maritime and ocean interests of the Philippines.
h. Render a
regular report to the Secretary of Foreign Affairs, on all activities
undertaken by the Center.
i. Source out
and avail of grants, endowments or donations from foreign or local
entities in accordance with existing laws to be applied to projects or
programs and studies to implement the policies or directives of the
Department of Foreign Affairs in connection with maritime and ocean
affairs.
Sec. 4. Organization of the MOAC
a.
The MOAC shall be headed by a Secretary General, who shall head be
appointed by the Secretary of Foreign Affairs. The Secretary General is
hereby authorized to hire and determine remuneration of consultants and
other experts and to request the detail and secondment of personnel
from other government agencies and institutions in accordance with the
Civil Service law, rules, and regulations.
b. The
Secretary General shall designate an Executive Director who shall serve
as the Chief of Staff of the Center and provide overall supervision of
the substantive work flow and administrative and day-to-day operations
of the Center.
c. The
Secretary General shall designate Directors for six Divisions to assist
the Secretary General in the performance of his functions. The six
divisions will be organized as follows:
Division
I Territorial and other Maritime jurisdictions;
Archipelagic Sealanes and Sealanes of
Communications; Cartography
Division II
International Seabed Authority (ISBA);
Exclusively Economic Zone; Continental Shelf
Division III
Fisheries; Marine Environmental Protection;
Marine Scientific Research
Division IV
Oceans Law and Policy; Research and Preparation
of Negotiating briefs in various
issues
on UNCLOS and other fora or bilateral
negotiations; International Dispute
Settlement Procedures
Division V
Other Law of the Sea issues; Piracy and
Sea Robbery
Division VI
Law of the Sea Library; Information dissemination;
Records; Conference and Secretariat Services
d.
Reorganization, realignment of functions, or creation of new divisions
or units shall be authorized by the Secretary of Foreign Affairs upon
the recommendation of the Secretary General.
Sec. 5. The Center for Maritime and Ocean Affairs
shall have an appropriate site for its offices. For this purpose, it is
hereby authorized to coordinate, arrange and occupy at no cost any
appropriate area under the administrative control of any agency or
government-owned and controlled corporation, subject to the approval of
its governing board; or construct/lease such building as may be
necessary to house the Center, subject to the approval of the Secretary
of Foreign Affairs.
Sec. 6. Funding. — Subject to the usual auditing
and accounting rules and regulations, the Center shall be provided with
an initial annual allocation of Ten (10) million Pesos (P10,000,000) to
be drawn from funds to be identified by the Department of Budget and
Management. Appropriations for the succeeding fiscal years shall be
incorporated in the General Appropriations Act.
Sec. 7. Repealing Clause. — The provisions of
Executive Order No. 738 (1981) Establishing the Cabinet Committee on
the Treaty on the Law of the Sea; Executive Order 328 (1988)
Reconstituting the Cabinet Committee on the Law of the Sea; Executive
Order No. 186 (1994) Expanding the Coverage of the Cabinet Committee on
the Law of the Sea and Renaming It As the Cabinet Committee on Maritime
and Ocean Affairs; and Executive Order No. 132 (1999) Strengthening the
Cabinet Committee on Maritime and Ocean Affairs and its Supporting
Mechanisms, Establishing its Technical Committee and for Other
Purposes, that are inconsistent herewith are hereby repealed and
superseded.
Sec. 8. Effectivity. — This Order shall take
effect immediately.
Done in the City of Manila,
this 24th day of September, in the year of Our Lord, Two Thousand and
One.
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Since 19.07.98.