PRESIDENT MESSAGE

This past year, our country has once again been confounded with questions involving truth and trust, accountability and transparency, governance and legitimacy, standards that we as a people have aspired to see in our country. But even as we wallow in the exasperation at the recent turn of events in our national situation, we are also challenged to take a hard look at ourselves, the NGO community, and ask if truly we can holdp up the ideals that we look for in our national leadership and not be questioned in turn?

In fact, the rapid growth and higher visibility of civil society organizations bring more responsibility to play our role effectively, and in some instances, have been raised questions about our own transparency and accountability. This was mostly the reason why PCNC was established: to give assurance to donors and the public at large that our member NGOs have passed predetermined standards of transparency and accountability and are worthy of this public trust and support.

In answer to these challenges then, the PCNC Board has decided to chart a more vigorous direction for PCNC -- to evolve certification to the next level, and to lead the way in the development of a method that results not only in an NGO's certification for tax incentives but also certification of its capacity to produce social results. At the Board's strategic discussions last November, the following concerns were flagged as priority areas to address: strenghtening the efficiency and credibility of PCNC's certification/accreditation system; positioning PCNC certification as a value-adding part of a larger and sustainable system to promote NGO performance benchmarking and excellence; and exploring how PCNC can become a capacity-builder for NGOs even among those who are not aware of PCNC and/or do not feel the need for certification.

In fact, the Board revisited the PCNC Vision and Mission, recasting them thus:

       Vision: A Filipino nation blessed with a culture of giving, matched by responsible stewardship within the NGO community. Sought by donors, recognized by government, and treasured by its members, PCNC certification ensures an NGO's sevice excellence and accountability.

       Mission: PCNC exists to improve the effectiveness of Philippine NGOs so that they become increasingly accountable, credible, and capable in providing services to those in need; and to be instrumental in creating a culture of giving.

The amendment of PCNC's Vision and Mission statement comes at an auspicious time: the marking of our 10th anniversary, a decade of commitment to its initial mission of continuously creating the environment where NGOs enjoy credibility and the confidence of their various stakeholders. What PCNC has achieved in the years past is credit ot the synergistic support of its members and friends, both in the Philippines and in other places, as well as our co-workers in the Department of Finance and the Bureau of Internal Revenue. We thank them sincerely.

We are all part of this journey. Since other countries have been looking to us as a template for a self-regulatory mechanism that some have started to emulate, we have an important role to play not only in the local level but in the global level as well. Despite the present dissaray in our national environment, we hope that we in the NGO community will even be stronger in upholding the principles of truth and integrity by our examples of accountability, transparency, and good governance.

Here lies the greatest challenge of all: that we continue to uphold our guiding principles and share these with the rest of civil society organizations, not only here in the Philippines but also across the world.

We close with gratitude in our hearts, higher aspirations for our vision, and loftier ambitions for more effective NGOs serving our people. Thank you everyone.

Vitaliano N. Nañagas II

PCNC Chair