Section 15Sec./Art. 15

Advisory Council. -An Advisory Council shall be created at the regional and national levels to be headed by the DSWD.

The regional advisory councils and NAC shall have, as members, representatives from the DSWD, Department of Health (DOH), Department of Education (DepEd), Department of Agriculture (DA), Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR), Department of Science and Technology (DOST), and Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA). The regional advisory councils and NAC shall also have, as additional members, two (2) representatives from accredited nongovernmental organizations working or monitoring social welfare service programs.

The Advisory Councils shall have the following functions:

(a) Meet regularly to promote coordination across agencies to enhance the implementation of the program and jointly address and resolve program implementation issues;

(b) Recommend to the President measures and policies for the responsive delivery of the commitments under this Act and integration with the general poverty reduction strategy of government;

(c) Ensure that the funding requirements for livelihood, training and employment facilitation programs shall be included in the annual budgets of the government agencies implementing the same;

(d) Promulgate a grievance redress system and accept complaints and grievances pertaining to the implementation of the 4Ps; and

(e) Review the monitoring and assessment reports of the Independent Monitoring Committee and submit necessary policy recommendations to Congress to improve and strengthen the program, if necessary.