WHEREAS, Executive Order No. 395 issued on 24 January 1997, approved and adopted the National Action Agenda for Productivity (NAAP) and created the Philippine Council to ensure a united effort on productivity improvement and accelerate the country ™s over-all development;

WHEREAS, the Philippine Council for Productivity (PCP) was tasked under E.O. 395 to coordinate the preparation of Regional Action Agenda on Productivity (RAAP) together with the Regional Development Councils and the Department of Interior and Local Government;

WHEREAS, there is a need to create a body in each region to formulate an effective Regional Action Agenda for Productivity and thereby maximize the participation of all sectors in the implementation of the National Action Agenda for Productivity.

NOW THEREFORE, I, FIDEL V. RAMOS, President of the Republic of the Philippines, by virtue of the powers vested in me by law and the Constitution, do hereby order:

SECTION 1. Constitution of Regional Productivity Committee. There shall be constituted a Regional Productivity Committee in each region to be organized by the respective Regional Development Council.

SEC. 2. Composition of the Regional Productivity Committee. The Regional Productivity Committee, herein referred to as RPC, in each region shall be chaired by the Regional Director of the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA). The Chairperson shall appoint two Vice-Chairpersons from the private sector, one from the labor sector, to be nominated by the Department of Labor and Employment Regional Director, and one from the business sector, to be nominated by the Department of Trade and Industry Regional Director. Representatives from the following agencies and organizations shall sit as members of the RPC:

1. Department of Agriculture
2. Department of Agrarian Reform
3. Department of Education, Culture and Sports
4. Department of Labor and Employment - Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board (RTWPB)
5. Department of Trade and Industry
6. Department of Budget and Management
7. Department of Interior and Local Government and
8. Department of Science and Technology.

Representatives from member-local government units of RDCs shall sit as members of the RPCs. Representatives shall also be invited from each of the following: private productivity organizations (to be nominated by the RTWPB), Academe, non-government organizations, people ™s organizations, business and labor groups.

A representative from the Civil Service Commission may be requested to participate in the formulation of the Regional Action Agenda for Productivity. An official from the Development Academy of the Philippines (DAP) shall also sit as member of the RPC in regions where DAP representation is possible.

All agencies/organizations herein represented shall assign permanent representatives to the RPCs. Government agencies shall be represented by officials with a rank not lower than Director or its equivalent and an alternate representative with a rank not lower than Assistant Director or its equivalent.

The NEDA Regional Offices shall provide technical and administrative support to the RPCs in cooperation with the DOLE-RTWPB, DTI, DILG and DAP.

SEC. 3. Functions of the Regional Productivity Committees. Each RPC shall:

1)	Coordinate the formulation of the action agenda for productivity consistent with the framework, guiding principles and the sectoral agenda of the NAAP;
2)	Recommend performance measures/indicators of productivity at the local levels which will be used to monitor and assess annual performance;
3)	Organize consultation workshops to validate policies, programs and targets in the RAAP;
4)	Review and endorse the Regional Action Agenda for Productivity to the Regional Development Council;
5)	Coordinate, monitor and evaluate the implementation of the RAAP to ensure that programs and projects in the agenda are implemented by the concerned agencies;
6)	Recommend to the Philippine Council for Productivity measures to improve productivity in the region that will require national government action;
7)	Submit reports to the Philippine Council for Productivity every four months on the implementation of the RAAP; and
8)	Perform other functions as may be deemed necessary.

SEC. 4. Role of the Regional Development Councils. The Regional Development Councils shall provide supervision and guidance to the RPCs, as part of its functions provided for under Executive Order No. 325, s. 1996.

SEC. 5. Funding. Funds necessary for the operations of each of the RPCs shall be Incorporated in the annual budget of the respective NEDA Regional Office. For 1997 operations, funding for the RPCs shall be incorporated in the budget of the Philippine Council for Productivity to be sourced from the Department of Budget and Management, as provided under Executive Order 395.

SEC. 6. Effectivity. This Administrative Order shall take effect immediately.

DONE in the City of Manila this 10th day of April, in the year of Our Lord, Nineteen Hundred and Ninety-Seven.

(Sgd.) FIDEL V. RAMOS
President of the Philippines

By the President:
(Sgd.) RUBEN D. TORRES
Executive Secretary