The Local Government Code of 1991 significantly manoeuvered the structure of governance in the Philippine local governments through decentralisation. As disaster risks and its impacts are experienced locally, the proactive undertakings of and inputs from the municipalities, cities and the barangays call for the complementary integrative role of the regions and provinces, and the harmonisation of efforts following the policy directions of the national government. This paper presents a brief overview of the Philippines’ experience on decentralisation and highlights some of the salient features of disaster risk reduction and management (DRRM) vis-à-vis decentralisation thru a case study in the Municipality of Hagonoy in the Province of Bulacan. It also cites the issues and challenges confronted by the local government units (LGU) in planning for and managing of disasters. Lastly, it recommends improvements in the planning and administrative systems in order to attain an effective DRRM system/mechanism.