WHEREAS, The General Assembly of the United Nations, through Resolution No. 41/187 adopted at its session of 8 December 1986, proclaimed the period 1988-1997 the World Decade for Cultural Development to be observed under the auspices of the United Nations and the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization.

WHEREAS, The Philippines, fully subscribing to the objectives of the said Decade to wit, acknowledging the cultural dimension of development; affirming and enriching cultural identities; broadening participation in culture; and promoting international cultural cooperation, is a signatory to the aforementioned Resolution;

WHEREAS, the U.N. Conference on the Decade of Women held at Nairobi in July, 1988 responding to the initiative of the International League of Folk Arts for Communication and Education (FACE) passed a resolution of the Forward Looking Strategies for Women, recommending to the United Nations General Assembly that a year in the Decade be dedicated to indigenous and traditional cultures to affirm the role of women in promoting cultural identity and development;

WHEREAS, the UNESCO/International Theater Institute (ITI) at its 20th Congress in Havana, Cuba in June 1987, approved the Philippine proposal to host the International Festival and Conference on Indigenous and Traditional Cultures in Manila in 1988 to usher in the United Nations proclaimed World Decade of Cultural Development, to observe the 40th anniversary of the International Theater Institute;

WHEREAS, it is now incumbent on the Philippine Government to undertake such preparations as are necessary to support the World Decade for Cultural Development and to promote full international, regional, and national participation in the said Festival and Conference, thus ensuring its success; and

WHEREAS, foremost among the preparations to be undertaken is the creation of a National Organizing Committee to direct, coordinate, and supervise Philippine participation in the World Decade for Cultural Development in general, and the Festival and Conference in particular;

NOW, THEREFORE, I, CORAZON C. AQUINO, President of the Philippines, by virtue of the powers vested in me by law, do hereby create the National Organizing Committee for the First International Festival and Conference on Indigenous and Traditional Cultures to usher in the World Decade for Cultural Development.

The Honorary Chairman of the Committee shall be the Secretary of Foreign Affairs of the Philippines. The Secretary of Education, Culture and Sports and the Secretary of Tourism, representing the government, and the Chairman of the People ™s Council for Culture, Education, Development and International Understanding (PCCEDIU) and the Chairman of the Philippine Board of Advertising representing the private sector, as co-chairpersons. The other members of the Committee shall be:

1. Secretary, Department of Environment and Natural Resources
   
   
2. Secretary, Department of Local Government and Community Development
   
   
3. Secretary, Department of Trade and Industry
   
   
4. Secretary, Department of Budget and Management
   
   
5. Secretary, Department of National Defense
   
   
6. Press Secretary, Office of the President
   
   
7. Secretary, Department of Agriculture
   
   
8. Secretary, Public Works and Highways
   
   
9. Governor, Metro Manila Commission
   
   
10. President, University of the Philippines
    
    
11. Executive Director, Office of Muslim Affairs
    
    
12. President, Tribal Communities Association of the Philippines
    
    
13. Executive Director, Office of Northern Cultural Communities
    
    
14. Executive Director, Office of Southern Cultural Communities
    
    
15. Philippine Business for Social Progress

The Honorary Chairman, Co-Chairpersons and other members of the Committee may designate their respective permanent representatives in case of their inability to personally participate in the work of the Committee.

The Committee shall moreover establish a Secretariat to implement such policies and guidelines on the project as shall be formulated by the National Organizing Committee. The Secretariat shall be headed jointly by the Director General of UNIO and the FACE Chairperson with the Executive Secretaries of PCCEDIU and the TRICAP as Deputy Secretary Generals. The Secretariat of the Committee shall be sited at the Philippine International Convention Center in Manila.

The Committee is hereby also empowered to call upon all other agencies and institutions of the Philippine Government as well as private organizations and individuals concerned to assist the Committee in its tasks and to contribute such resources as are required to ensure the success of this undertaking.

The Department of Budget and Management is hereby directed to immediately earmark and release such funds as are necessary for the operations of the Committee and the Secretariat, sourced from and equally chargeable to the current approved budgets of the participating government agencies, subject to accounting-and auditing requirements.

This Administrative Order shall take effect immediately.

Done in the City of Manila, this 30th day of March in the Year of Our Lord, Nineteen hundred and eighty-eight.


By the President:
(Sgd.) CATALINO MACARAIG, JR.
Executive Secretary