The ANGEL Network System

THE ANGEL NETWORK SYSTEM

Rationale

Faced with the tasks and challenges, and aware of the potential of Information technology (IT) as an effective tool for generating and managing the information it needs to meet its mandate, LEDAC established the electronic linkages between and among its member agencies. This is the Advisory Network for the Government Executive and Legislature, or the ANGEL Project. It covers the installation of electronic linkages between and among the Office of the President (OP), the Philippine Senate, the House of Representatives (HOR) and the National Economic Development Authority (NEDA)/ Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council (LEDAC).

The ANGEL Project was constituted by virtue of the agreement reached during the LEDAC Executive Meeting of 17 July 1996. Relative thereto, Special Order No. 96-01 dated 03 June1996 was issued which provided for a project steering committee and inter-agency project technical staff. Subsequently, Special Order No. 035-97 dated 29 January 1997 was issued which created an inter-agency Pre-qualification, evaluation, and Awards Committee for the procurement of equipment and services for the ANGEL Project

Objectives

The ANGEL Project's main objective is to set up a network system that will provide comprehensive information and online databases for government planning, legislation and congressional budgeting. Alongside this aim, the project also seeks to support the flow and exchange of information among its member agencies.

To attain the objectives, the project seeks to achieve the following:

1. Installation and establishment of electronic linkages between and among the Office of the President, Senate of the Philippines, House of Representatives, the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA), and the LEDAC Secretariat, so as to allow the following:

- Sharing and fast access to vital and strategic databases

- Electronic messaging/exchange of information

- File/document transfer

2. Development and establishment of an integrated information system and strategic databases relevant to LEDAC.

Structure

ANGEL is structurally composed of a cluster of servers, workstations and databases which are linked to each other to form the network system.

The offices to be linked are as follows:

A. Office of the President

1. Presidential Management Staff

2. Presidential Legislative Liaison Office

3. Office of the Press Secretary

4. Malacañang Records Office

B. Senate of the Philippines

1. Senate Policy Studies Group

2. Presidential Legislative Liaison Office

C. House of Representatives

1. Congressional Planning and Budgeting Office

2. Presidential Legislative Liaison

D. National Economic and Development Authority / LEDAC

1. Sectoral Staff

2. Office of the Director-General

3. Legislative Liaison Office

4. LEDAC Secretariat

Functional Features

ANGEL's functional features shall provide for the following:

* Online Access to Databases/Information Sharing

As a comprehensive information network, ANGEL shall make available to the OP, Senate, House of Representatives and NEDA/LEDAC a number of vital and strategic databases/information that will reside at the various servers in the network.

These databases are the following:

1. Executive Database (Office of the President)

The Executive Database contains, among others, information pertaining to the following:

- Priority projects of the President

- Policy Decisions and Presidential issuances (i.e. Administrative Orders, Executive Orders, Circulars, etc.)

- Presidential speeches

The database shall be complemented with an information system regarding the following:

- Urgent Executive measures/bills being proposed

- Economic and Social Reform Agenda of the Administration

2. Legislative Database (Senate of the Philippines and House of Representatives)

The Legislative Database shall contain the following information:

- Measures/Bills being deliberated upon by both the Senate of the Philippines and the House of Representatives (with regards to the Common Legislative Agenda)

- Measures/Bills passed by Congress

3. Socio-Economic Database (NEDA)

This database shall specifically contain data on macro-economic indicators by sector. Other contents are data pertaining to investment programs and government projects

4. LEDAC Database (LEDAC Secretariat)

The LEDAC database shall provide information relative to the following:

- LEDAC meetings

- LEDAC Secretariat

- LEDAC Executive Committee

- ANGEL Project Technical Information

* Discussion Forums

The discussion forum tool will enable users to hold and record conversations online. It aims to provide a means by which the LEDAC community can air their views regarding current issues being deliberated upon by the LEDAC membership. As members of the LEDAC community, members can post articles dealing particularly with contentious issues being deliberated upon by LEDAC. Through an open and free discussion, it is envisioned that the discussion forum feature of the ANGEL network system can contribute to the resolution of such contentious issues.

* Electronic Mail

E-mail shall allow users to communicate with each other on an online interactive mode.

* Intranets and Extranets

The original project concept for the ANGEL Project is that of a private information network and connection to the Internet was not originally envisaged. But because of the phenomenal success of the Internet Revolution, being wired to the Internet ands connected to the rest of the world is inevitable. Consequently, we must make sure that the technologies we use and the strategies we adopt are supported by the technologies we use and the strategies we adopt are supported by the Internet.

With the growing popularity and cost effectiveness of Internet technologies, i.e. intranet and extranet, adopting the said technologies will enhance government development planning, legislation and congressional budgeting activities in support of LEDAC's mandate.

An intranet is a network of networks consisting of interlinked local area networks and also use telecommunication lines in the wide area network. An extranet, on the other hand, can be viewed as part of the organizations intranet that is extended to users outside the participating agencies of the LEDAC.

The application of the intranet and extranet technologies for the ANGEL Project will operationalize applications such as electronic mail, group discussion and document sharing to facilitate information exchange between and among the participating agencies in the LEDAC network in support of the mandate of the LEDAC.

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