Question & AnswerQ&A (EXECUTIVE ORDER NO. 57)
The main purpose of EO No. 57, s. 2024 is to strengthen the Philippines' maritime security and maritime domain awareness through a unified, coordinated, and effective governance framework.
The Order covers the 'Maritime Domain,' which includes all areas and things of, on, under, relating to, adjacent to, or bordering on an ocean, sea, or other bodies of water, including internal waters, territorial sea, contiguous zone, exclusive economic zone, and continental shelves.
Maritime Security is defined as the protection and conservation of the country's marine assets, maritime practices, territorial integrity, and coastal peace and order, which includes military, socio-economic, environmental, and political concerns.
Maritime Domain Awareness refers to the effective understanding of anything associated with the maritime domain that could impact the sovereignty and sovereign rights, security, safety, economy, or environment of the country.
The National Coast Watch Council is renamed and reorganized as the National Maritime Council, composed of the Executive Secretary as Chairperson and members including secretaries of key departments such as National Defense, Agriculture, Environment and Natural Resources, Foreign Affairs, Justice, and others, plus the Solicitor General and the Director-General of the National Intelligence Coordinating Agency.
The Council exercises overall jurisdiction on maritime security policy formulation, provides strategic direction, recommends policies to the President, formulates national strategies, oversees the National Maritime Security Policy, harmonizes plans and funding, coordinates government agency roles, creates committees/task forces, and performs other necessary functions.
The POMC provides consultative, research, administrative, and technical services to the Council, assists in legislative and administrative review, supports committees and task forces, coordinates with the National Maritime Center, and performs other functions directed by the Council or President.
The Philippine Coast Guard leads the National Maritime Center, which gathers and disseminates maritime security information, develops communication systems, coordinates maritime surveillance, monitors operations, facilitates multinational cooperation, supports prosecution of violators, assesses maritime security, and performs other directed functions.
Agencies including the Philippine Coast Guard, Armed Forces of the Philippines, Philippine National Police, DOJ-National Prosecution Service, Bureau of Customs, Bureau of Immigration, National Bureau of Investigation, Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, Philippine Center on Transnational Crime, Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency, NAMRIA, Philippine Space Agency, and University of the Philippines Institute for Maritime Affairs and Law of the Sea.
The National Maritime Center is authorized to accept donations, contributions, grants, bequests, or gifts from domestic or foreign sources for purposes relevant to their mandates and functions, subject to existing laws, rules, and regulations.