DA-BFAR RECOGNIZED AS TOP PERFORMING AGENCY IN FOI AWARDS

The Department of Agriculture - Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (DA-BFAR) has been awarded as one of the most requested and top performing agencies in the electronic Freedom of Information (eFOI) portal by the Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO) yesterday, December 12, at the Peninsula Manila Hotel, Makati.

DA-BFAR is among the selected few recognized for its exceptional performance in processing and responding to at least 80% of the total received transactions lodged in the eFOI portal.

"This award is a testament of the Bureau's commitment which is aligned with DA Secretary William D. Dar’s priority to offer efficient, effective, timely, swift, and quality service to our clienteles, especially in providing relevant and up-to-date fisheries-related information to requesting parties and in upholding the public’s constitutional right to information," DA-BFAR national director Eduardo Gongona said.

The FOI awardees were chosen after careful evaluation and deliberation process by the FOI Awards Screening Committee, which is composed of the Office of the Executive Secretary as Chairperson, the Philippine Librarians Association Inc. (PLAI), the National Press Club (NPC), the Caucus of Development NGO Network (CODE-NGO) as members of the selection committee.

The eFOI system is part of the government's commitment to promote transparency and uphold the constitutional right of the people to information on matters of public concern.

The Freedom of Information is enacted into law by virtue of the Presidential Executive Order No. 2 Series of 2016, which requires all government agencies under the executive branch to make records, contracts, transaction and any information available to the public, except for sensitive information and matters affecting national security.

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