The province of Iloilo was chosen as one of the pilot local government units (LGUs) for the implementation of the Local Governance Reform Project (LGRP) Component 3 to further boost revenue administration.
Governor Arthur Defensor, Jr. attended the ceremonial signing of the memorandum of agreement between the Department of Finance – Bureau of Local Government Finance (DOF-BLGF) and the province of Iloilo, according to a report from the Capitol.
Finance Secretary Benjamin E. Diokno also attended the event held on March 2, 2023 at Conference Room A, Podium Floor, DOF Building in Malate, Manila.
The Sangguniang Panlalawigan passed Resolution No. 2022-713 authorizing the Governor to sign the MOA on behalf of the province.
Defensor said the centerpiece of the assistance is better fiscal administration.
“They are going to give us support in terms of technical support, equipment and training of our personnel especially in the Office of the Assessor on the administration of real property taxes. The real property tax is the biggest revenue source of the province,” Defensor said.
He also thanked the DOF for choosing Iloilo as one of the recipients of the project.
The province of Iloilo has passed the general requirements in terms of human and technical resources and for having a favorable environment. It is fully tax mapped, with a favorable peace and order situation.
The LGRP is a four-year loan project of the Asian Development Bank provided to the Philippine government to boost the revenue administration of pilot LGUs and scale up the delivery of local public services.
It has four components, namely strengthening of institutional development and policy support for property valuation; implementation of property tax valuation database and information systems; enhancement of real property taxation of selected LGUs; and professionalizing local assessors.
LGRP is projected to provide upgraded training of assessors nationwide; provide technical assistance in updating the Schedule of Market Values (SMV); Tax Maps and assessment records in pilot LGUs; and support legislation to standardize real estate valuation nationwide.JBG/Capitol News/laf/PIA6-Iloilo
