REPUBLIC
ACT NO. 7192 AN
ACT PROMOTING THE INTEGRATION OF WOMEN AS FULL AND EQUAL PARTNERS OF
MEN
IN DEVELOPMENT AND NATION BUILDING AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES.
Section
1. Title. — This Act shall be
cited as the "Women in Development and Nation Building Act."
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Sec.
2. Declaration of Policy. — The
State recognizes the role of women in nation building and shall ensure
the fundamental equality before the law of women and men. The State
shall
provided women rights and opportunities equal to that of men.chanrobles virtual law library
To
attain the foregoing policy:
(1) A
substantial portion of official development assistance funds received
from
foreign governments and multilateral agencies and organizations shall
be
set aside and utilized by the agencies concerned to support programs
and
activities for women; chan
robles
virtual law library(2) All
government departments shall ensure that women benefit equally and
participate
directly in the development programs and projects of said department,
specifically
those funded under official foreign development assistance, to ensure
the
full participation and involvement of women in the development process;
and chanrobles virtuallaw libraryred
(3) All
government departments and agencies shall review and revise all their
regulations,
circulars, issuances and procedures to remove gender bias therein.
Sec.
3. Responsible Agency. — The
National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) shall primarily be
responsible
for ensuring the participation of women as recipients in foreign aid,
grants
and loans. It shall determine and recommend the amount to be allocated
for the development activity involving women. chanrobles virtuallaw libraryred
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Sec.
4. Mandate. — The NEDA, with
the assistance of the National Commission on the Role of Filipino
Women,
shall ensure that the different government departments, including its
agencies
and instrumentalities which, directly or indirectly, affect the
participation
of women in national development and their integration therein:
(1) Formulate
and prioritize rural or countryside development programs or projects,
provide
income and employment opportunities to women in the rural areas and
thus,
prevent their heavy migration from rural to urban or foreign
countries; chan
robles
virtual law library(2) Include
an assessment of the extent to which their programs and/or projects
integrate
women in the development process and of the impact of said programs or
projects on women, including their implications in enhancing the
self-reliance
of women in improving their income; chanrobles virtuallaw libraryred
(3) Ensure
the active participation of women and women's organizations in the
development
programs and/or projects including their involvement in the planning,
design,
implementation, management, monitoring and evaluation thereof;
(4) Collect
sex-disaggregated data and include such data in its program/project
paper,
proposal or strategy;
(5) Ensure
that programs and/or projects are designed so that the percentage of
women
who receive assistance is approximately proportionate to either their
traditional
participation in the targeted activities or their proportion of the
population,
whichever is higher. Otherwise, the following should be stated in the
program/project
paper, proposal or strategy;
(a) The
obstacle in achieving the goal; chan
robles
virtual law library(b) The
steps being taken to overcome those obstacles; and chanrobles virtuallaw libraryred
(c) To
the extent that steps are not being taken to overcome those obstacles,
why they are not being taken.
(6) Assist
women in activities that are of critical significance to their
self-reliance
and development.
Sec.
5. Equality in Capacity to Act.
— Women of legal age, regardless of civil status, shall have the
capacity
to act and enter into contracts which shall in every respect be equal
to
that of men under similar circumstances.chanrobles virtual law library
In
all contractual situations where married men have the capacity to act,
married women shall have equal rights.chanrobles virtual law library
To
this end:
(1) Women
shall have the capacity to borrow and obtain loans and execute security
and credit arrangement under the same conditions as men; chanrobles virtuallaw libraryredchan
robles
virtual law library(2) Women
shall have equal access to all government and private sector programs
granting
agricultural credit, loans and non-material resources and shall enjoy
equal
treatment in agrarian reform and land resettlement programs;
(3) Women
shall have equal rights to act as incorporators and enter into
insurance
contracts; and
(4) Married
women shall have rights equal to those of married men in applying for
passport,
secure visas and other travel documents, without need to secure the
consent
of their spouses.
In
all other similar contractual relations, women shall enjoy equal rights
and shall have the capacity to act which shall in every respect be
equal
to those of men under similar circumstances. chanrobles virtuallaw libraryred
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Sec.
6. Equal Membership in Clubs.
— Women shall enjoy equal access to membership in all social, civic and
recreational clubs, committees, associations and similar other
organizations
devoted to public purpose. They shall be entitled to the same rights
and
privileges accorded to their spouses if they belong to the same
organization.chanrobles virtual law library
Sec.
7. Admission to Military Schools.
— Any provision of the law to the contrary notwithstanding, consistent
with the needs of the services, women shall be accorded equal
opportunities
for appointment, admission, training, graduation and commissioning in
all
military or similar schools of the Armed Forces of the Philippines and
the Philippine National Police not later than the fourth academic year
following the approval of this Act in accordance with the standards
required
for men except for those minimum essential adjustments required by
physiological
differences between sexes. chanrobles virtuallaw libraryred
Sec.
8. Voluntary Pag-IBIG, GSIS and
SSS Coverage. — Married persons who devote full time to managing the
household
and family affairs shall, upon the working spouse's consent, be
entitled
to voluntary Pag-IBIG (Pagtutulungan — Ikaw, Bangko, Industriya at
Gobyerno),
Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) or Social Security System
(SSS)
coverage to the extent of one-half (1/2) of the salary and compensation
of the working spouse. The contributions due thereon shall be deducted
from the salary of the working spouse.
The
GSIS or the SSS, as the case may be, shall issue rules and regulations
necessary to effectively implement the provisions of this section.cralaw:red
Sec.
9. Implementing Rules. — The
NEDA, in consultation with the different government agencies concerned,
shall issue rules and regulations as may be necessary for the effective
implementation of Sections 2, 3 and 4, of this Act within six (6)
months
from its effectivity.cralaw:red
Sec.
10. Compliance Report. — Within
six (6) months from the effectivity of this Act and every six (6)
months
thereafter, all government departments, including its agencies and
instrumentalities,
shall submit a report to Congress on their compliance with this Act.
Sec.
11. Separability Clause. — If
for any reason any section or provision of this Act is declared
unconstitutional
or invalid, the other sections or provisions hereof which are not
affected
thereby shall continue to be in full force and effect. chanrobles virtuallaw libraryred
Sec.
12. Repealing Clause. — The provisions
of Republic Act No. 386, otherwise known as the Civil Code of the
Philippines,
as amended, and of Executive Order No. 209, otherwise known as the
Family
Code of the Philippines, and all laws, decrees, executive orders,
proclamations,
rules and regulations, or parts thereof, inconsistent herewith are
hereby
repealed.cralaw:red
Sec.
13. Effectivity Clause. — The
rights of women and all the provisions of this Act shall take effect
immediately
upon its publication in the Official Gazette or in two (2) newspapers
of
general circulation. chanrobles virtuallaw libraryred
Approved:
February 12, 1992
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