Membership to the RDC is determined by the various laws, EOs, and provisions that comprise the legal mandates of the Council. Currently, the RDC VIII has 79 members, composed of 21 LGUs – all provinces, cities, and capital towns; 24 Regional Line Agencies; 15 Private Sector Representatives (PSRs) which comprise one-fourth (1/4) of the fully constituted Council, and 19 Special Non-Voting Members (SNVMs) – institutions or individuals invited to be a non-voting member of the Council in recognition of the RDC VIII’s need for their experience and expertise in a critical field.

The officers of the RDC VIII are: The Chairperson, Co-Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson and Secretary.

The Chairperson and Co-Chairperson jointly head the Council. Both the government and private sectors must be represented in the chairpersonship. Thus, if the chairperson is from the government sector, the co-chairperson must be from the private sector, and vice versa. Heads of RLAs are not eligible to be nominated as Chair/Co-Chair of the Full Council, although they may chair the Council’s Sectoral Committees and TWGs.

Meanwhile, the NEDA Regional Director serves as the ex-officio Vice-Chairperson of the Council, while the NEDA Assistant Regional Director acts as its ex-officio Secretary.

Members of the Council are organized into Sectoral Committees (SecComs), each with their own functions, to help the Council fulfill its obligations and responsibilities. The SecComs are led by a Chairperson and Co-Chairperson appointed by the Full Council Chairperson. Moreover, the RDC VIII has Affiliate Committees that provides assistance in coordinating, monitoring, and evaluating issues and concerns that may not be covered by the Sectoral Committees or that need special attention.

When there is a need to tackle an urgent concern and the RDC VIII Full Council is unable to convene, an Executive Committee (ExCom) may instead act on the matters that require immediate attention for and in behalf of the RDC. The ExCom comprises one-fourth of the total membership of the fully constituted Council. ExCom membership is determined by the Council, provided that all Sectoral Committee Chairpersons and Co-Chairpersons are automatically members of the Committee. The officers of the RDC also serve as the officers of the ExCom.

We also have the Advisory Committee. Commonly known as the AdCom, it is composed of members of the ExCom and Congresspersons from the region who will signify their interest to join the Committee. Its main function is to advise, assist and support the Council in discharging its functions, especially on matters that require attention at the national level.