Page 21 - Property Rights in the Philippine A Time and Cost Study_July 2017

issues related to this particular subject matter. One that is widely known among all managers in LMB, not
just to the LAMS Team. One that is communicated to users and clients. One that would include provisions
for a Help Desk system.

With this, the researchers recommend the following activities:

Recommendation 1: Assist LMB in improving their ICT Management mechanism. This activity
intends to offer and provide Technical Assistance to LMB for Information Systems Design or ICT
Project Management. This could lead to more effective implementation of LAMS and build-up of its
databases, making it easier for CENRO, PENRO and Regional Officials to access needed data for
Free Patent issuance and decrease the delays in Systematic Adjudication, Sporadic Adjudication,
and CENRO Processing.

Recommendation 2: Explore better connectivity options for CENROs, PENROs and Regional
Offices. The most promising technology for this, in an archipelagic setting like the Philippines, is
satellite internet connectivity. The technology has been proven, but policy reforms need to be put
in place to make this available for domestic use.

Increasing Efficiency, Transparency and Accountability in the Pre-Adjudication Phase

The most significant delay is with submission of required documents, either in Systematic or
Sporadic Adjudication. It is also the reason for a significant, unofficial expense: because of the perceived
(and experienced) complexity of this process, many applicants either opt for “Package Deals” ranging from
PhP 2,000.00 to PhP 15,000.00. Worse, for the same reasons, many lot occupants discontinue their
application for free patents.

Current practices are inefficient (requires so much back-and-forth to gather data, print documents,
sign documents, secure more documents), and non-transparent (only the Adjudicator and the applicant
knows the status of the application, and only the Adjudicator knows exactly what the applicant should
submit). There is also very little accountability, as the Adjudicator’s bosses do not even know about the
status of applications that the Adjudicator is working on.

With this, the researchers recommend the following activities:

Recommendation 1: Current work on PLA Mobile is addressing the inefficiency issue. PLA Mobile
makes it easier for Adjudicators to record data from interviews and field work, keep track of
documents required or submitted, print the actual documents, take geo-tagged photos of the lot/s,
and photos of submitted documents.

Recommendation 2: PLA Mobile also has a potential for addressing transparency and
accountability issues. Data from the App could be uploaded to a website - such as the Cadasta
Platform, a secure, hosted suite of mobile and web based tools that can store, organize, and utilize
many types of data - so that pre-applications are visible not only to the Adjudicators, but also to the
applicants and managers of the Adjudicators.

Recommendation 3: Engage LMB in a long-term plan for integration of PLA Mobile with LAMS,
and for nationwide roll-out. LMB needs to “own” PLA Mobile and its integration with LAMS.

Recommendation 4: Add a functionality to PLA Mobile to upload entries into the Cadasta Platform.
Making the information in PLA Mobile available to applicants, local government partners and DENR
supervisors and managers, through a public-access website, can increase transparency and
accountability. It could increase the number of completed applications and decrease “pre-
application” time.

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