Strengthening the Tamaraw Conservation Program and Providing the Implementation Mechanism Thereof

DENR Administrative Order No. 2025-01

Subject: Strengthening the Tamaraw Conservation Program and Providing the Implementation Mechanism Thereof

Signed: January 2025 . Published: The Manila Times, February 8, 2025 . Acknowledged: ONAR, U.P. Law Center, February 11, 2025

Legal Basis

RA 9147 (Wildlife Resources Conservation and Protection Act); RA 7586 (NIPAS Act) as amended by RA 11038 (E-NIPAS Act); Presidential Proclamation No. 273 (October as Tamaraw Month); Executive Order No. 544; DAO 2019-09 (Updated National List of Threatened Philippine Fauna); DAO 2016-12 (Philippine Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan); and DAO 2005-26 (transfer of the Tamaraw Conservation Program to DENR MIMAROPA through PENRO Occidental Mindoro).

SECTION 1. Basic Policy

The State shall conserve and protect wildlife resources, particularly threatened endemic species. The DENR shall implement a comprehensive program to protect the critically endangered, Mindoro-endemic Tamaraw (Bubalus mindorensis) from extinction.

SECTION 2. Objectives

• Provide comprehensive conservation and management strategies engaging government, indigenous peoples, the private sector, and civil society, including habitat protection and Tamaraw corridors.
• Enhance institutional coordination for the DENR Tamaraw Conservation Program (TCP).
• Secure whole-of-government and whole-of-society support for the Tamaraw Conservation and Management Action Plan.

SECTION 3. Tamaraw Conservation and Management Action Plan (TCMAP)

The TCMAP (Annex A), a ten-year plan for 2024 to 2033, is approved and adopted. Its strategies cover: a coordination and support mechanism aligned with ADSDPPs, Protected Area Management Plans, and Forest Land Use Plans; information, education, and communication for IP groups and the public; interventions for existing populations in Mts. Iglit-Baco Natural Park, Mt. Calavite Wildlife Sanctuary, Upper Amnay Watershed, and the Aruyan-Malati Tamaraw Reservation; and expansion of the population to suitable habitats. DENR MIMAROPA and the Biodiversity Management Bureau (BMB) review the TCMAP every five years and jointly monitor it annually.

SECTION 4. Institutional Arrangements

• Tamaraw Conservation Program Office (TCPO): the renamed implementing unit for Tamaraw conservation across Mindoro, with a staff complement including a program leader, wildlife veterinarian, biologist, GIS specialist, rangers, and law enforcement officers. It prepares the annual Work and Financial Plan, manages the Tamaraw Conservation and Research Center (which subsumes the Tamaraw Gene Pool Farm in Rizal, Occidental Mindoro), and reports quarterly and annually.
• DENR MIMAROPA Region: exercises overall supervision through PENRO Occidental Mindoro, assigns a full-time Program Leader of at least Salary Grade 22, and includes TCPO requirements in its annual budget.
• Protected Area Management Offices: integrate Tamaraw measures into protected area management plans and treat the Tamaraw as a priority monitoring and indicator species.

SECTION 5. Coordinating Body

The Mindoro Corridor Alliance Advisory Committee (CAAC), created under MIMAROPA RDC Resolution No. 2023-082-11801 and chaired by DENR MIMAROPA, serves as the coordinating body and seeks advice from ERDB, the Philippine Veterinary Medical Association, the IUCN Asian Wild Cattle Specialist Group, and academic experts.

Transitory Provision and Funding

Within one year of effectivity, DENR MIMAROPA prepares the financial and human resource requirements, including plantilla positions, for the TCPO. Funding is sourced from the annual budget of DENR MIMAROPA and DENR priorities.

SECTION 10. Effectivity

Takes effect fifteen (15) days after publication in a newspaper of general circulation and upon acknowledgement by ONAR.

Signed by Secretary Maria Antonia Yulo Loyzaga. Summary prepared by EnviSynergy from the official DENR issuance; refer to the full text for binding provisions.