DUMAGUETE CITY, Philippines (PNA) -- Dumaguete City Mayor Manuel Sagarbarria has forged an agreement with the Ateneo School of Government (ASoG) using Government Watch (G-Watch) as an accountability tool in monitoring and improving the delivery of health services in the city down to the barangay level.

A memorandum of agreement was inked in simple ceremonies Monday followed by a briefing of selected barangay monitors in 12 pilot barangays of the city. Sagarbarria said the scope of the project “Subay Kahimsog” is the monitoring of health service delivery from identification, purchase and acquisition, bidding process up to the actual allocation of medicines down to the end-users in the barangay level.

G-Watch director Joy Aceron stressed that the participation of the community is vital in tracking the flow of resources down to the desired beneficiaries. She said health and medicine services in the city are very critical because it has one of the biggest budget allocations. Hence, the need to establish a monitoring system to make sure investments allotted for the purpose is received by targeted beneficiaries and whether it observes standard procurement processes.

Aceron said the system will also check on reports of too much politicking in the distribution of medicines in the barangay level, including the presence of fly-by-night suppliers.

The project, which is funded by the European Union, is piloting six local government units, four cities, one province and one municipality throughout the country, before replicating the same in the national level in cooperation with the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG).

City administrator William Ablong admits the city has implemented a lot of health projects but has not really scrutinized if the output is commensurate to the amount invested.