Current Practices in Cultural Properties Regulation in the Philippines and Future Plans

Ian Carlos V. Lipardo*, Vanessa Marquez‑Nicolas, and Mikhaela Clare I. Castro

The National Commission for Culture and the Arts has been granted the power to regulate cultural properties and activities related to these properties in 2021 with the creation of the Cultural Properties Regulation Division. The regulatory function of the Commission has been fully implemented since 2022 with the establishment and implementation of several permitting and registration systems. Through the years of implementation of these policies, the same were tested and data were gathered. With the data gathered during the implementation, guidelines are amended or currently being amended, new guidelines are produced, and new legislation protecting cultural properties and strengthening the protection of cultural workers is currently being produced and discussed. This presentation will report the current practices in the Philippines in protecting archaeological sites and finds, and its future plans in developing updated rules and regulations.