WHEREAS, Section 29 of Republic Act No. 8792 or the œElectronic Commerce Act , approved by the President on 14 June 2000, gives the Department of Trade and Industry the authority to direct and supervise the promotion and development of electronic commerce in the country with relevant government agencies;

WHEREAS, the two salient provisions of the Electronic Commerce Act are Section 27 (Government Use of Electronic Data Messages, Electronic Documents and Electronic Signatures) and Section 28 (RPWEB to Promote the Use of Electronic Documents and Electronic Data Messages in Government and to the General Public);

WHEREAS, the Philippine Business Registry (PBR) system will facilitate a seamless transactional environment for business registration and development across the application systems of various government agencies such as but not limited to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR), Social Security System (SSS), and Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth);

WHEREAS, Executive Order No. 428 issued on 18 May 2005, directs Departments, Bureaus, Offices and other Agencies in the Executive Branch, including Government-Owned and Controlled Corporations to simplify rules and regulations and reduce reportorial requirements to facilitate doing business and encourage more investments in the country;

WHEREAS, Executive Order No. 557 issued on 08 August 2006, establishes an Anti-Red Tape Task Force chaired by the DTI Secretary, the objective of which is to immediately remove national government bottlenecks, particularly those that hinder the securing of necessary permits in starting up private businesses;

WHEREAS, the PBR will evolve into a business facilitation platform that is envisioned to increase commercial activities within and outside the country;

NOW, THEREFORE, I, GLORIA MACAPAGAL-ARROYO, President of the Republic of the Philippines, by virtue of the powers vested in me by law, do hereby order:

SECTION 1. The Secretary of Trade and Industry is hereby directed to establish and administer comprehensive and integrated programs for business registration and facilitation at the national, regional and local levels with due consideration to advances in convergence and other emerging technologies. For this purpose, he may call on any agency, corporation or organization, whether public of private, whose development programs in business registration and preparation and implementation of such programs. Technical Working Groups (TWGs) may also be created to address specific issues and concerns.

SECTION 2. The Secretary of Trade and Industry shall formulate and recommend national policies and guidelines that will promote business registration and facilitation with both public and private sectors. For this purpose he shall consult the -

1. Chairman, Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
2. Commission, Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR)
3. Commissioner, Bureau of Customs (BOC)
4. President and Chief Executive Officer, Social Security System (SSS)
5. Administrator, National Statistics Office (NSO)
6. President and Chief Executive Officer, Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth)
7. Secretary, Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG)
8. President, Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI)

SECTION 3. The Secretary of Trade and Industry shall perform such other powers and functions as may be prescribed by law or as may be necessary, incidental or proper to pursue its mandate or as may be assigned from time to time by the President. He shall submit a periodic report of its activities to the President.

SECTION 4. To carry out the provisions of this Order, funds for the necessary expenses for the operations of the PBR shall come from Philippine Business Registry (PBR) project funds administered by the Department of Trade and Industry subject to existing accounting and auditing rules and regulations.

SECTION 5. This Order shall take effect immediately.

DONE in the City of Manila, this 8th day of December, in the year of Our Lord, Two Thousand and Six.

By the President:

(Sgd.) EDUARDO R. ERMITA
Executive Secretary