“One of the best elements of a budget is when it is participatory in nature, and as much as possible, grassroots, so we tried to open up the budget process to civil society.”

Maxine Tanya Hamada reflects on her personal experience crossing over in the Philippines and the recognition among her colleagues that a plan was needed for their entries into government. She highlighted their efforts to create an inclusionary budgetary process.

From 2014 to 2016, Hamada served as the Assistant Secretary in the Department of Budget Management in the Office of the President. Previously, Hamada served as the executive director of the International Center for Innovation, Transformation and Excellence in Governance (INCITEGov), a membership-based, non-profit organization.  She is also a founding member of Young Public Servants (YPS), an allied organization of INCITEGov focused on promoting good governance and democratic citizenship among the youth.  Additionally, she was the presidential assistant under the Presidential Task Force for Indigenous Peoples in 2002 and as senior technical officer of the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process (OPAPP) from 2003 until her resignation in 2005.