The Virac Water District has been bestowed the 2023 Freedom of Information (FOI) Rising Star Award for its significant contribution to the development and progress of the FOI program.
VIWAD General Manager Gabriel Tejerero and Administrative Officer Elaine Ang received the trophy from the Presidential Communications Office (PCO) during the awarding ceremony held Nov. 21 at Hilton Manila last Nov. 21, 2023.
The annual FOI Awards is organized by the PCO’s Program Management Office to honor the efforts of government agencies, institutional partners, individuals and civil society organizations that significantly contributed to the development and success of the FOI program implementation as well as those who have demonstrated an outstanding commitment to freedom of information.
Nominees were asked to submit their FOI Manual and 2022 FOI Reports, onboard the electronic FOI (eFOI) portal at www.foi.gov.ph, and post the one-page FOI Manual in the agency’s transparency seal.
In addition, it must have at least 85% response rate in processing FOI requests and without any overdue pending requests as of July 1, 2023.
VIWAD was one of only three water districts in the Bicol region which were conferred the award.