WHEREAS, the Government under its present structure needs an appropriate coordinating and implementing agency to carry out the Socio-Economic Program;

WHEREAS, there is necessity for a single agency in the Government to be in charge of and responsible for analytical staff work at the highest level to insure consistency of action in program implementation and matters of policy formulation involved therein;

WHEREAS, it is necessary that the President know as intimately as possible the plans, policy proposals, methods and problems related to the primary goal of accelerated economic growth; and

WHEREAS, it is also necessary that the best possible technical staff work be available to the President at all times to provide him with the necessary information for day-to-day decisions as well as for policy formulation;

NOW, THEREFORE, I, Diosdado Macapagal, President of the Philippines, by virtue of the powers vested in me by law, do hereby create the Program Implementation Agency under the Office of the President which shall serve as the technical staff of the President responsible for the determination of economic priorities in the allocation of public funds, for technical and policy research, and for other related actions necessary to effect the coordination and implementation of the Socio-Economic Program.

1. The Agency shall be directly under and responsible to, the President of the Philippines.

2. The Agency shall be headed by a Presidential Economic Assistant to be known as Director-General who shall have Cabinet rank.

3. The Agency shall have such personnel as may be assigned or detailed to it from departments, bureaus, offices and instrumentalities of the Government and such other personnel as the President may deem necessary for the performance of the Agency ™s work. All positions in the Agency are hereby declared to be highly technical and/or primarily confidential in nature.

4. The duly authorized officials of the Agency shall have the authority, on behalf of the President of the Philippines, to secure data and information directly from all government offices and entities and to consult and confer with the officers and personnel thereof, on such matters as may be necessary for the Agency to discharge its functions.

5. The Agency shall have the following functions and responsibilities:

(a) It shall perform socio-economic planning work at a level in-between the overall aggregative view of the National Economic Councils and the specialized specific views of individual government departments, corporations and financial institutions.

(b) It shall analyze, coordinate and integrate the plans, projects, programs and studies of the various government departments, agencies and instrumentalities for the purpose of formulating policy recommendations, establishing priorities and programming the utilization of public funds, manpower resources, and materials and equipment.

(c) It shall analyze, evaluate, coordinate and, where necessary and with the approval of the President, initiate major capital projects involving public funds or funds of public financial institutions.

(d) It shall perform the necessary studies and formulate recommendations for consistent internal and external economic policies of the Government.

(e) It shall perform the necessary analytical and projection work in the fields of operational planning and basic policy research.

(f) It shall undertake analytical work in commodity production and demand and, on the basic thereof, consult with and make suggestions to private entrepreneurs for appropriate investment projects in the private sector.

(g) It shall establish, with the approval of the President, the necessary criteria, and other guidelines for the public and private sectors for investment decisions consistent with the objectives of the Socio-Economic Program.

(h) It shall prepare draft legislative proposals designed to achieve the various targets and objectives of the Socio-Economic Program.

(i) It shall perform such other functions as may be necessary to attain its objectives and shall discharge such other duties as the President may direct.

Done in the City of Manila, this 24th day of August, in the year of Our Lord, nineteen hundred and sixty-two.

(Sgd.) DIOSDADO MACAPAGAL
President of the Philippines

By the President:
(Sgd.) SALVADOR L. MARI O
Executive Secretary