During the annual inspection conducted by CDA to the cooperatives in the City of Imus, one of the common findings is the absence of GAD Policy and GAD Plan and Budget. This concern was raised in one of the meetingsof theCity of Imus Cooperative Development Council. To address the problem, it was agreed to conduct Seminar on GAD Policy Formulation and GAD Plan Preparation and which will become a part of the activity of Cooperative Month Celebration of Imus City.

In the afternoon of October 19, 2020, a Webinar on GAD Policy Formulation and GAD Plan Preparation was conducted by City of Imus Cooperative, Livelihood and Enterprise Development Office (CICLEDO) in partnership with City of Imus Cooperative Development Council (CICDC). The seminar aims to teach officers of cooperatives in Imus City,particularly the GAD Committee, on how to prepare GAD Policy and GAD Plan and Budget to enable the attending cooperatives to comply with the common findings of CDA inspectorswhich is the absence of GAD Policy and GAD Plan. The seminar was attended by forty-seven(47) officers representing twenty-seven (27) cooperatives and seven (7) other attendees from CICLEDO and accompanied by Mr. Ismael Fampula of CDA Region IV-A, the assigned Cooperative Development Specialist in Imus City.

During the seminar, the objectives and the process of formulating GAD Policy were discussed and a simple format of GAD Policy was also presented. Participants were also given presentations on how to prepare GAD Plan and Budget for a cooperative.

At the end of the seminar, participants were given advice to always update every year end the GAD Assessment Tool to determine the maturity level of cooperative in GAD mainstreaming. They were also advised that the CDA will be releasing soon the computerized GAD Assessment Tool for easier documentation. (By: Mr. Ismael F. Fampula, CDS II-Cavite)