This paper is an assessment of the constraints and opportunities for capturing the gains from the devolution of environmental and natural resource (ENR) management and for engendering a more sustainable ENR management system in the Philippines. It provides a brief characterization of fiscal...

Fifteen years into the implementation of the Local Government Code of 1991, now is an opportune time to assess how this landmark legislation has contributed to (or detracted from) the achievement of local autonomy with accountability. The literature on fiscal decentralization suggests that these...

This study analyzes the effect of the interaction between domestic indirect taxes and tariff system to the market of particular goods. Computation of effective protection rates is provided and the implications of alternative indirect tax schemes are examined.

Governance is a complex concept. It includes the state’s institutions and structures, its decisionmaking process, its capacity to implement guidelines and the relationship between government officials and the public. Hence, this study attempts to develop a composite index of the quality of...

Through the provision of the Local Government Code, transfer of responsibilities from the national to the local level has been instituted. This paper analyzes some of the LGC provisions since these affect the country’s financial status. Simulation of fiscal repercussions is performed, the...

This article discusses the issue of establishing, as many countries have, an independent revenue authority. Such organizations are conventionally and explicitly founded to combat inefficiencies, corruption and the politicization of tax administration that are all too evident here in the...

The prevalence of hunger in the Philippines prompted the government to launch its hunger mitigation initiative in November 2005. Such initiative consisted of two programs: the Food-for-School Program (FSP) and the Tindahan Natin Program (TNP). The FSP belongs to a class of social safety nets...

Stimulated by the success of the East Asian dragons, commitment on the design and administration of export promotion policies have been renewed. Against the backdrop of protection structure, the first-best solution to the problem is the complete overhaul of the protection structure. In the event...

The President’s Budget for 2004 is the administration’s last prior to the forthcoming presidential elections in May 2004. Thus, it is but timely to assess not only the proposed 2004 budget itself but also the present administration’s fiscal performance in the last three years. The...

The improving fiscal situation in the Philippines presents an opportune time for the government to reassess the resource requirements of achieving the millennium development goals (MDGs) and to exercise greater vigilance in ensuring that the MDGs benefit from the fiscal space that has been...