Automation is playing a key role in the success story of Tagbilaran’s highly improved revenue collection efforts.
The efforts to use technology for better governance finally paid off after the city government wins third place in the Best in Business Empowerment category at the Digital Governance Awards (DGA) ceremony.
Mayor John Geesnell Yap recognized the efforts of the Business Permits and Licensing Office (BPLO) and City Treasurer’s Office (CTO) and City Assessor’s Office (CAO) for using technology to enhance the capability of the city to cater to the needs of business enterprises especially during business permit application or renewal.
Before the automation, getting a business permit used to be a tedious process, usually taking a month or so.
But this scenario has changed dramatically when the BPLO, CTO, and the Information Technology department came up with a streamlined system called e-TAGB.
The e-TAGB system is a platform seeking to speed up the business permitting process.
After the e-TAGB was put in place, the collection of business taxes in Tagbilaran City rose by 30% or P 59 million, surpassing the target set by the Bureau of Local Government Finance (BLGF).
As a result of the better revenue collection, the city government bagged the Seal of Good Financial Housekeeping and the Most Business Friendly Local Government Unit (LGU) award in 2018 and 2020.
The city’s ranking in the Cities and Municipalities Competitive Index (CMCI) also improved as a result of improved revenue collection with automation through the use of technology.
Mayor Yap is grateful to the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG), Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT), and the National ICT Confederation of the Philippines (NICP) for recognizing Tagbilaran City’s efforts in using technology to better serve the city’s constituents as the city earns a citation in the DGA.