The House Committee on Visayas Development will discuss the appointment of regional directors for the Negros Island Region at a meeting Monday morning, Feb 24.
They will also discuss other updates on the establishment of the NIR regional offices at the meeting to be held at the House of Representatives, Rep. Emilio Bernardino Yulo (Neg. Occ, 5th district) said Saturday, Feb. 22.
The meeting is being held to fast track the setting up of the NIR regional offices, he said.
“We are already in the first quarter of the year so we hope everything will be ready by the second quarter, particularly because after the elections the budget” for 2026 will be tackled, Yulo said.
The budgets of the NIR regional offices will be included in the National Expenditure Program for 2026, he said.
Republic Act 12000 establishing the NIR states that the regional offices of the following agencies will be located in Negros Occidental:
AGRICULTURE AND LAND-RELATED CLUSTER
· Department of Agriculture;
· Department of Environment and Natural Resources;
· Department of Agrarian Reform; and
· Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development.
PEACE AND ORDER AND SECURITY CLUSTER
· Department of Justice;
· Department of the Interior and Local Government;
· Philippine National Police; and
· Department of National Defense.
GOVERNANCE CLUSTER
· Department of Budget and Management;
· Department of Finance;
· National Economic and Development Authority;
· Department of Foreign Affairs;
· Commission on Audit; and
· Commission on Elections.
The regional offices assigned to Negros Oriental are:
HUMAN DEVELOPMENT CLUSTER
· Department of Education;
· Department of Social Welfare and Development;
· Department of Health;
· Technical Education and Skills Development Authority;
· Commission on Higher Education;
· Civil Service Commission;
· Philippine Statistics Authority; and
· Department of Labor and Employment.
INFRASTRUCTURE CLUSTER
· Department of Public Works and Highways;
· Department of Transportation;
· Department of Information and Communications Technology; and
· Department of Energy.
INDUSTRY AND LABOR CLUSTER
· Department of Trade and Industry;
· Department of Tourism;
· Department of Science and Technology; and
· Department of Finance – Securities and Exchange Commission.*