The roots of the present Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) may be traced to the old Department of Interior (DI) during the Philippine Revolution of 1897. On March 22, 1897, leaders of the Katipunan led by Andres Bonifacio met at Tejeros, Cavite in what is known in the Philippine history as the Acla de Tejeros of the Tejeros Convention.

A revolutionary government was established at that time and the new government elected Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo as President and Andres Bonifacio as Secretary of Interior. However, Bonifacio did not assume the post. President Aguinaldo then appointed Pascual Alvarez as the Interior Director.

As the years of struggle for independence and self-government continued, the interior department became the premier office of the government tasked with various functions raging from supervision over local units, forest conservation, public instructions, control and supervision over the police, counter-insurgency, rehabilitation, community development and cooperatives development programs.

In 1950, the department was abolished and its functions were transferred to the Civil Affairs Office under the Office of the President. On January 6, 1956, the Presidential Assistant on Community Development (PACD) WAS CREATED. The Department was restored on November 7, 1992 with the creation of the Department of Local Government and Community Development (DLGCD). Few years later, the DLGCD was reorganized and renamed Ministry of Local Government (MLG) and later as the Department of Local Government (DLG).

On December 13, 1990, Republic Act 6975 was signed into Law creating the Philippine National Police, Bureau of Fire Protection, Bureau of Jail and Penology and the Philippine Public Safety College under the reorganized Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG).

The new DILG merged the National Police Commission (NAPLOCOM), and all the bureaus, offices, and operating units of the former DILG under Executive Order No.262. The passage of RA6975 paved the way for the union of the local governments and the police force after more than 40 years of separation.

The Department shall promote peace and order, ensure public safety, strengthen capability of local government units through active people participation and a professionalized corps of civil servants.

The Department is primary catalyst for excellence in local governance that nurtures self-reliant, progressive, orderly, safe and globally competitive communities sustained by God-centered and empowered citizenry.

Assist the President in his general supervision over local government units, oversee and monitor the implementation of the Local Government Code of 1991, enhance the capabilities of the LGU's for self-governance, and implement plans and programs on local autonomy;

Enforce laws and regulations, prevent, suppress and solve crimes, assist in the successful prosecution of criminal cases;

Undertake relevant measures regarding fire protection and jail management and penology, ensure humane treatment and rehabilitation of inmates; assist in disaster preparedness plans and programs, and assist the LGU's in formulating and implementing their public safety programs, and; Undertake a human resource development program; produce a well-trained and morally upright cadre of police, fire and jail personnel, improve internal systems and procedures for effective delivery of services; and conduct periodic structural and functional reviews.

• Ensuring and sustaining DILG relevance in the light of local autonomy.
• Building the capability of LGUs to govern.
• Maximizing the opportunities made available to the LGUs by the Local Government Code.
• The direction of local governments towards demands for essential services, multi-sectoral representation and people's participation in local development.
• Speeding up the shift from reactive to proactive or anticipatory decision making and governance.
• Fight against criminality and lawlessness.
• Ensuring the responsiveness of the police and public safety services towards community partnership in promoting peace and public safety.
• Enhancing the professionalization of the organization and its men and the modernization of tools for peace and public safety services.

• Assist the President in the exercise of general supervision over local governments;
• Advise the President in the promulgation of policies, rules, regulations and other issuances on the general supervision over local governments and on public order and safety;
• Establish and prescribe rules, regulations and other issuances implementing laws on public order and safety, the general supervision over local governments and the promotion of local autonomy and community empowerment and monitor compliance thereof;
• Provide assistance towards legislation regarding local governments, law enforcement and public safety;
• Establish and prescribe plans, policies, programs and projects to promote peace and order, ensure public safety and further strengthen the administrative, technical and fiscal capabilities of local government offices and personnel;
• Formulate plans, policies and programs which will meet local emergencies arising from natural and man-made disasters;
• Establish a system of coordination and cooperation among the citizenry, local executives and the Department, to ensure effective and efficient delivery of basic services to the public;
• Organize, train and equip primarily for the performance of police functions, a police force that is national in scope and civilian in character.

The DILG is divided into two major functional sectors, namely: The Interior Sector and Local Sector.

The Interior Sector is composed of the National Police Commission (NAPOLCOM); Philippine National Police(PNP); Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP); Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) and Philippine Public Safety College (PPSC).

The NAPOLCOM has branch offices at the regional level, while the PNP and BFP also have their respective regional offices and a network of provincial, city and municipal police offices and fire stations. The BJMP has also its regional offices and it supervises the city, municipal and district jails.

On the other hand, the PPSC operates the Philippine National Police Academy (PNPA), the Police National Training Institute, the Fire National Training Institute, the National Police College, and the Jail National Training Institute.

The Local Government Sector is composed of the following bureaus, offices and support services:

• Bureau of Local Government Development (BLGD)
• Bureau of Local Government Supervision (BLGS)
• National Barangay Operations Office (NBOO)
• Office of Project Development Service (OPDS)
• Office of Public Affairs (OPA)
• Local Government Academy (LGA)
• Planning Service (PS)
• Financial Management Service (FMS)
• Legal Service (LS)
• Electronic Data Processing Service (EDPS)
• Administrative Service (AS)

The LG Sector has also offices at the regional, provincial, city and municipal levels.