PCNC: Use certified NGOs

To maintain organizational “good housekeeping” among numerous non-governmental organizations (NGO) in the country and weed out non-performing and illegitimate ones, private regulator Philippine Council for NGO Certification (PCNC) has underscored need for stricter compliance to its accreditation process.
More than certifying NGOs for ‘Donee Institution Status,” which grants these organizations the right to receive tax-deductible and tax-exempt donations under the 1995 Tax Code, the council aims to uplift the effectiveness of local NGOs and promote accountability, capability, and credibility among them.
“Many Filipinos have their hearts in the right place and have the intrinsic urge to help the underprivileged. We need to ensure that their kindness reach the right cause,” said PCNC Chairman Sonny Carpio who is also the Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of Aboitiz Foundation – the social development arm of the Aboitiz Group.
The move stemmed from a recent controversy involving the alleged misuse and abuse of the “pork barrel funds” or what is formally called the Priority Development Assistance Funds (PDAF) of the House of Representatives by dubious organizations.
“A review of organizations or foundations that were alleged to have received PDAF showed that they never applied nor received PCNC certification,” Mr. Carpio pointed out.
The PCNC, in consultation with experts, NGOs and grant-making institutions, are implementing standards that determine organizational legitimacy or the NGO’s capability to comply with government statutory requirements.
These standards are grouped according to organizational functioning including vision, mission, and goals; governance; internal management; program management; financial management, and collaborative linkaging.
Mr. Carpio explained that the council assesses and certifies NGOs with “volunteer peer evaluators” as frontrunners. These are reputable executives from PCNC-certified organizations who measure compliance to “good housekeeping” in partnership with the Philippine Institute for Certified Public Accountants (PICPA).
“Accountants from PICPA ensure that applicant NGOs are compliant with generally-accepted accounting principles and practices and the Philippine Financial Reporting System,” he said.
To date, PCNC has granted over a thousand certifications to NGOs with validity of one, three, and five years.