This is in line with the Department’s mandate to develop the capabilities of local government units by helping newly elected officials prepare for their duties and responsibilities and define their development roadmaps.

The program is divided into four components that will be implemented by the DILG through the LGA, the bureaus, and the Local Governance Resource Centers (LGRCs) of the DILG Regional Offices, in partnership with the Philippines Development Forum and the Leagues of Local Governments.

Component One: Ensuring Smooth Transition jumpstarts the whole program. This component intends to facilitate the smooth transition of authority from the outgoing to the incoming local officials in their respective LGUs.

Component Two: Laying the Foundation is characterized by two tracks—Track1A or My First 100 Days in Office where local officials are expected to prepare their First 100 Days Agenda and Track1B or Knowing My LGU where they are expected to finalize their Executive and Legislative Agenda (ELA); and Track2 or Learning from my Peers which serves as a venue for peer-based sharing of realistic, practical, and innovative ways of tackling the responsibilities of local officials within the framework of good local governance.

Component Three: Building Alliances, on the other hand, endeavors to establish institutional mechanisms for strategic partnerships between the province and the municipalities and component cities to collectively determine their vision, mission, and goals as well as identify areas of cooperation, convergence, and synergy among stakeholders.

Component Four: Sharpening the Saw provides for the training and capacity development interventions mapped out from the LGUs’ Capacity Development Agenda.

Under this program, different component activities such as the Orientation of the DILG Officials on the Program, the NEO Program Managers Workshop, and Training of NEO Coaches from among DILG technical field personnel have been conducted in the first quarter of 2010. This program is in collaboration with the LGUs through the Leagues and NGAs. It is funded by the European Commission, AECID, and the DIALOG Trust Fund.