ELA (Executive and Legislative Agenda)

WHAT IS AN EXECUTIVE AND LEGISLATIVE AGENDA?

The Executive Agenda, to be effectively operationalized and implemented, calls for certain policies and legislative measures. Without the appropriate legislative/policy support, EA implementation may be stalled and its potential gains for the community reduced. It is therefore essential that the executive and legislative departments of the LGU coordinate their priorities, and ensure that their actions are mutually supportive of each other and directed at a common set of local development priorities.

The Executive-Legislative Agenda (ELA) is a planning document that is mutually developed and agreed upon by both the executive and legislative departments of an LGU. It is an integrated plan that contains the major development thrusts and priorities of both the executive and legislative branches towards a common vision for the locality.

What are the uses of an ELA?

 A joint ELA has the following important uses:

•  To lead the executive and the legislative branches towards a unified vision, mission, goals and objectives;
• To enable the executive and legislative branches to agree on priority problems and issues
• To help the LGU focus on a set of interventions towards the attainment of a common set of objectives and goals;
• To increase the chances for implementation of priority programs of the executive department, if the legislative branch formulates ordinances in support of the LCE program of government; and
• To speed up the implementation of priority projects.

WHAT IS THE RELATIONSHIP OF THE ELA WITH OTHER EXISTING LGU PLANS?

In the context of the Local Government Code (LGC) and based on the guidelines prepared by the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) and the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), there are at least four major types of plans required of LGUs. These are as follows:

Major LGU Plans

In the context of the Local Government Code (LGC) and based on the guidelines prepared by the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) and the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), there are at least four major types of plans required of LGUs. These are as follows:

1. Comprehensive Land Use Plan (CLUP)
2. Comprehensive Development Plan (CDP)
3. Local Development Investment Program (LDIP)
4. Annual Investment Plan (AIP)  

The LGC also mandates the preparation of Barangay Development Plans to encourage more bottom-up planning. Apart from these plans, LGUs are also expected to prepare other sectoral or thematic plans (e.g., local poverty reduction action plan, solid waste management plans, gender and development plans, etc.), which are consolidated into the CDP. 

Table 1 summarizes these major plans in relation to their definition, purpose, contents, responsibility, time frame and legal basis.

The LGU vision serves as the basis for all planning efforts in the locality. This vision is translated in the form of a Comprehensive Land Use Plan (CLUP), a long term plan which lays out the development directions that also defines the physical pattern of growth for the locality for at least 10 years. Ideally, all other plans should be consistent with the CLUP to ensure continuity, rationality and stability in local development efforts down through the generations.

Medium-term plans such as the CDP, usually ranging from three to six years, are prepared to concretize the LGU vision. The LDIP, on the other hand, defines the investment program of the LGU for three years and is ideally derived from the CDP. The CDP and the LDIP have timeframes not necessarily tied up with the LCE’s term of office.

The Annual Investment Plan defines the priority programs and projects of the LGU that will be financed through its 20 percent Development Fund. The Barangay Development Plans paves the way for bottom-up planning in the local planning process. The BDP provides critical information on community needs and aspirations that should be considered into the next level of planning. BDP preparation is similarly guided by planning parameters set by the LGU.

• How to Formulate an Executive and Legislative Agenda for Local Governance and Development A Manual.pdf (1,1 MB)
• ELA Manual - A Facililitators Guide.pdf (666,6 kB)