Originally Written: September 13, 2013

 

To mark the annual National Disaster Consciousness Month, CARE Nederland and its strategic partners in the Philippines carried out in July month-long activities in 36 schools located in high-risk villages across the country. In each school, the various activities were capped by earthquake evacuation drills. By the end of July, a total of 6,776 students and 364 teachers have increased their awareness about disasters and have acquired basic emergency preparedness skills such as school contingency planning and conducting evacuation drills.

The 36 schools are participating in two complementary DRR projects being implemented by CARE and partners in the Philippines – the Partners for Resilience (PfR) Project and the Scale Up, Build Up Project (SUBU). PfR is a five-year project being supported by The Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs. SUBU is an 18=month project by the European Commission Humanitarian Aid and Civil Protection department’s disaster preparedness programme (DIPECHO). The

The strategic partners are Agri Aqua Development Cooperation (AADC), Assistance and Cooperation for Community Resilience and Development (ACCORD), Cordillera Disaster Response and Development Services (CORDIS RDS) and Corporate Network for Disaster Response (CNDR).

Although the different schools have different risk profiles, a common general strategy was adopted for all schools. The teachers are trained on Community-Based Disaster Risk Reduction that incorporates Climate Change Adaptation and Ecosystem Management and Restoration. This allowed them to prepare lesson plans that incorporate DRR in regular school subjects such as science and social science. These lesson plans were subsequently implemented by teachers to raise student awareness on how they can reduce their exposure to risks. School Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Committees (SDRRMCs) were also organized. These SDRRMCs carried our risk assessments and led in the formulation of school contingency plans. The school activities were capped by evacuation drills which served to create increased awareness among students and teachers about the school contingency plan, which includes the school evacuation plan, and to test the effectiveness of the plans.

While a few schools heads needed the intervention (through memoranda) of higher education authorities, most schools heads and teachers gladly welcomed the DRR activities.

“We have limited knowledge about out responsibilities as defined in the new laws about disaster risk reduction and climate change. A department memorandum also requires us to conduct quarterly evacuation drills. We try to comply with the requirements but we do not even know if we are doing them correctly. We are now confident that we are doing the classroom discussions and the evacuation drills correctly,” says Mr. Michael Pareja, a former teacher in Laminga National High School and now the principal of Waloe High School in Loreto, Agusan del Sur.

LAck of DRR capacity of teachers, location of schools in high-risk areas, and limited participation of school authorities at the subnational level were the key challenges encountered in the course of implementing the month-long activities. However, those on the ground, the teachers, are willing to learn towards resiliency. There is a marked increase in appreciation evident in all areas, summarized by Mrs. Rachel Balacdao, a teacher of Ucab Elementary School in Itogon, Benguet, we said,

“From now on, we will make the conduct of classroom discussion and earthquake drills regular, to ensure that children learn about them and are able to share the knowledge with their families.”

 

View and download a PDF version of this article here.

Originally Written: June 18, 2013

From the town proper of Bokod in Benguet, Sitio Cobabeng can be reached after an hour’s drive in a 4×4 pick–up. After passing the Ambuklao Dam, the paved highway will lead to a dirt road marked by deep ruts that ordinary vehicles won’t be able to negotiate. Scars of earlier landslides are evident in many places along the road, all the way to Sitio Cobabeng. 

Moving from one sitio to another in order to cover the whole barangay is a challenge. Barangay Poblacion is one of five Bokod barangays participating in the Partners for Resilience project. The distance and travel time from Cobabeng to Mangagew illustrates the challenges the staff of CorDisRDS have to face regularly to implement disaster risk reduction that incorporates climate change adaptation and ecosystem management and restoration in five barangays in Bokod municipality. In many instances, PfR staff having no service vehicle, have to hike for hours in order to reach these communities, like during days when the roads are not passable even to 4×4 vehicles. 

Sitio Cobabeng is one of eight sitios that comprise Barangay Poblacion. Another sitio of Barangay Poblacion is Sitio Mangagew, which can be reached from Cobabeng after more than an hour‘s drive. During rainy season, even 4×4 pick-ups would not be able to negotiate the deeply rutted dirt road to Mangagew. Being parts of the Poblacion, or the town centre, one is given the impression that the sitios are more accessible. They are not.

Sitio Cobabeng is an unofficial resettlement site. Residents moved to their present location after landslides hit their original settlement during the July 1990 earthquake. In 2009, the livelihood assets of Sitio Cobabeng residents sustained serious damage from four tropical cyclones that hit the country in one month: Ketsana, Parma, Melor and Lupit (local names Ondoy, Pepeng, Quedan and Ramil, respectively). For two weeks, they were also isolated because of numerous landslides that blocked the road to the community.

 

“With better understanding, we are now more confident in the decisions and actions that we take.”

Sitio Cobabeng was one of the locations where the Philippine Tropical Cyclone Emergency Response project (PTC-1) and the Philippine Tropical Cyclones 2009 Shelter and Livelihood Recovery Project (PTC-2) were implemented with support from the European Commission Humanitarian Aid and Civil Protection department (ECHO). In PTC-1, community residents received food-for–work (FFW) assistance. With the food distribution, community members opened and cleared the road of landslide debris, restoring vital access to their community. Community members also decided to redistribute some of the food assistance they received in order to start a community-owned rice retail store.

During PTC-2, Sitio Cobabeng residents were supported in establishing their small–scale mining enterprise. The decision to support the enterprise was taken after a series of discussions on the sustainability, including environmental sustainability, of such enterprise. The enterprise was designed to apply traditional small-scale mining methods. Traditional methods do not use chemicals in processing. Less mechanization is involved. Tunnels are dug instead of the very destructive open–pit mines. The impact on the environment is there much less compared to that of non-traditional mining activities. 

A start–up capital was also provided to enable to community to consolidate purchases of the gold produced so that community members will not have to deal with middlemen and intermediaries. 

Three years after, during a monitoring visit for the PfR, community members proudly relate that they are able to sustain the operations of their enterprise, and that they are enjoying various benefits from it: 

Asked about the single most significant change that they have experienced since the CorDisRDS worked with the community in 2009, Martina Wakit, a woman leader of the people‘s organization said: “In the past, our understanding of various events and phenomena (mga bagay-bagay) are fragmented and limited. We are now able to understand them better and how they are linked to one another. With better understanding, we are now more confident in the decisions and actions that we take.”

 

View and download a PDF version of this article here.

By Celso Dulce

Originally Written: December 10, 2012

 

I did not expect the sight that greeted us when we reached barangay Langaon. Men and women, including some elderly were repairing the hanging bridge known as Kalawahig-1. Some were erecting two concrete posts where steel cables of the bridge will be re-anchored. Some were replacing the wooden planks. Some were gathering rocks from the riverbed and piling them into an embankment that will strengthen the bridge’s foundation. Two days ago, we were informed that the bridge was washed out by a flashflood spawned by Typhoon Pablo (Bopha).

Typhoon Sendong (Washi) damaged the Kalawahig-1 suspension bridge that connects barangay Langaon to “the outside world.” The bridge was in a state of disrepair prior to Sendong, in the first place. The flooring is made of bamboo. The sides are unprotected and anybody, but most especially children, could easily fall into the river. The bridge was in urgent need of repair as the community could not bring their farm produce to the market, could not safely access relief assistance and basic services, and could not bring in basic commodities. 

In March 2012, CARE worked with the community to undertake minor repair of the bridge, as part of the cash-for-work activity. Cyclone wires were installed on the sides of the bridge to prevent people from falling into the river. 

Rotting bamboo were replaced to strengthen the flooring. Community members were jubilant, feeling safer as they cross the bridge everyday, to go to the market, and in general to do business with the outside world.

A follow-up CARE emergency response project provided another opportunity to further strengthen the bridge. Building on the initiative of a local NGO, Green Mindanao, which constructed a concrete foundation for a new bridge. CARE provided thick steel cables, wooden planks, cyclone wire, nuts and bolts, and other materials to complete the bridge through another cash-for-work activity. In August 2012, the new bridge was completed. I visited Langaon on 24 November 2012 and saw not only people crossing the bridge but even motorbikes laden with produce. The bridge was affording people safe access to goods and basic services. It was also encouraging people to increase agricultural production and livelihood activities as the people can now safely transport farm inputs and farm produce. 

On 5 December 2012, I was informed that barangay Langaon lost its hanging bridge to a big flashflood triggered by typhoon Pablo. The news was very difficult to accept. According to Langaon residents, Ugiaban Bridge one kilometer upstream got clogged and formed a temporary dam. When this temporary dam burst, it unleashed a huge wall of water that reached up to the Kalawahig-1’s flooring. The residents of Langaon watched helplessly as a huge wall of water washed away their bridge. The Kalawahig-1 was built substantially higher than the original precisely to prevent it from being overtopped by floodwaters. 

The Langaon community was able to retrieve all the bridge’s materials – the steel cables, the wooden planks, the nuts and bolts, the cyclone wires. With their meager resources, and without waiting for external assistance, the community started rebuilding their bridge. We were talking with some community members when Barangay Chairman Martin Tanio arrived, bringing with him perhaps two kilograms of tie wire I did not ask, but I had a very strong suspicion that it was the most that they could afford, having earlier bought already a few bags of cement and a few pieces steel reinforcement bars. 

Kalawahig-1 was built through a project partnership amongst CARE, ACCORD and RMP, with funding support from the European Commission Humanitarian Aid and Civil Protection department (ECHO), AXA Philippines and Metrobank Foundation. Barangay Langaon is in Baungon municipality, Bukidnon province. 

Driving back to Cagayan de Oro, my colleague Athena was saying that we were not mistaken sticking it out with the people and the leaders of Langaon. Langaon demonstrates the indomitable spirit of the poor and vulnerable, who aspire to make their communities more resilient.

 

View and download a PDF version of this article here.

Originally Written: December 12, 2012

 

“Not a single house was damaged because we prepared for the typhoon,” Romie Otacan, Barangay Captain of La Flora, Talacogon, Agusan del Sur proudly reported during the Tropical Storm Bopha (TS Bopha, locally known as Pablo) joint assessment made by CARE Nederland, Assistance and Cooperation for Community Resilience and Development Inc. (ACCORD), and Agri-Aqua Development Coalition–Mindanao (AADC).  

Otacan narrated that as soon as the barangay (village) received the typhoon forecast, they immediately carried out their community contingency plan, which was formulated by the community through the Climate-proof Disaster Risk Reduction, a project being implemented by the Partners for Resilience, which includes CARE, ACCORD and AADC. A day before the forecasted landfall of TS Bopha, the residents anchored their houses to nearby trees to prevent them from collapsing or from being damaged, before moving to pre-identified evacuation centers such as the elementary school, health center, and barangay hall. Village officials were also noticeably carrying out confidently their responsibilities defined in their community contingency plan.

Results of the joint assessment revealed that at least 500 houses were either partially or totally damaged in the whole municipality of Talacogon. The typhoon-ravaged Southern Mindanao, Northern Mindanao and CARAGA and left at least 700 persons dead and some 300,000 families homeless, according to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council. Residents said that Bopha is the worst typhoon that hit Talacogon, with winds even stronger than that of Washi (Sendong) which also punched through the municipality in December 2011.

For the past years, it has been a recurring challenge to convince LGUs and communities to invest in disaster risk reduction (DRR) initiatives, but Bgy. La Flora and other CARE barangays in Talacogon are proof that DRR pays off.  

View and download a PDF version of this article here.

Originally Written: April 2, 2013

 

Johari Cali is a playful boy with a shy smile. He is a Grade 4 pupil at the Mandulog Elementary School. He lives in Purok 21 of barangay Mandulog. Purok 21, together with Purok 18 and Purok 22, are separated from the rest of the barangay by Bayug River.  

Along with the other children in the community, Bayug River is Joharis’s playground. The river serves as their bathing place where they can swim until sundown. It is also in this river they get water for washing and drinking. Often, Joharis helps in household responsibilities by drawing water from the river. For Joharis, his family, and his neighbours, the river is everything.  

Joharis’s family’s house is located just beside the old Pigsu-otan concrete bridge. This bridge connects the three puroks of Mandulog, as well as barangay Lanipao, Dulag and Kalilangan to   the rest of Mandulog and Iligan City. Along with his other siblings, they walk for over a kilometre everyday in going to school. “My mother is very insistent that we never miss school. She would always tell us that it is hard if we are not educated. Better opportunities would rarely come way and would even be discriminated because of lack of education. My mother would say that education is the only gift I could give to us her children,” relates Joharis in the Maranao language. Arlene, or Inday to her neighbours, herself did not finish elementary grades.  

In the night of 17 December 2011, 2011 the river that used to be the children’s playground and the source of life to the community claimed many lives and destroyed a large amount of property in Joharis’s community.

Joharis’s eyes still widen as he recalls what he witnessed: “that night, the river   widened, overflowing its banks. The current was so strong. I have never seen the river so angry. Our neighbours were in panic as they sought refuge in our house.”  

Eventually, Joharis’s family had also to abandon its house. His Nanay Inday courageously gathered all her seven children and transferred to another house for safety. Keeping her children intact was all she could do as she heard the river’s strong current away the concrete bridge that connects them to the outside world.  

The young Johari together with his parents and siblings immediately started rebuilding their lives after the storm. They were among the lucky ones whose houses were not carried away by the deadly floods. But Swaib, Joharis’s father remained depressed for the coconuts that he was about to harvest were either washed away by the flood, or the flowers and nuts were blown away by the strong wind. For a time, the family experienced hunger. “We had only porridge and root crops,” reveals Joharis. Help that came is like a blessing that Allah delivers to them.  

Trying to go back to their normal lives, Johari continued going to school when it reopened. However, it was very difficult because since the concrete bridge that they used to cross was washed away by the floods, Johari and his siblings had to use a makeshift bamboo raft to cross the river in order to go to school. Her mother feared that  accidents might happen, but could not do anything since there is no other way for the children to go to school except to take the raft. During rainy days, when the river is swollen, Joharis’s mother would not let the children go to school. Thus, most of the time the children were absent. “My mother would not allow us to go to school when the river is swollen and the current is very strong. I also feel afraid at times, Johari relates.

“I have stopped wearing my shoes in going to school. It gets wet during the ride on the raft. I also wrapped my books and notebooks in plastic bags so that they will not get wet should it rain or the raft capsize when the current is strong.”  

On the way home from school Joharis and his siblings would always stop for a while and watch adult members of the community build a footbridge across Bayug River. They were overjoyed when the footbridge could already be used. Even if work on the bridge was not yet completed, with some community members still doing some paintwork, they were already allowed to use the bridge. Asked what the footbridge meant to him, Joharis said: “We no longer have to be absent from school when it rains hard. We no longer fear that the river’s strong currents would carry us away. My books and notebooks will no longer get wet. Now I can wear again my shoes to school.” There joy in Joharis’s eyes as he crosses back and forth the footbridge along with the other children, tugging with them their toy carts. Perhaps, crossing the bridge of hope somehow eases the sad memory brought by the storm. Now according to Johari, he can go to school running and he can now wear his shoes to school. And walks to school with a smile.  

 

View and download a PDF version of this article here.

Originally Written: June 18, 2013

 

UNISDR has honoured Saint Bernard municipality, Southern Leyte, with a citation of Merit during the 2013 UN Sasakawa Award for Disaster Risk Reduction ceremonies held last 22 May 2013 in Geneva, Switzerland. The municipality was awarded for its dedication to build its disaster risk reduction capacities. A traumatic landslide completely buried a whole village and claimed more than a thousand lives in 2006.

In presenting the citation, the Jury of the Sasakawa Award noted in Saint Bernard municipality that “despite modest means, a great dedication to capacity building, protection and preparedness is observed. This is an example of how response to an external input could generate successful consequences. Saint Bernard is a fourth-class municipality. Under the theme “Acting As One”, the biennial UN Sasakawa Award for DRR recognizes excellence in reducing disaster risk for a safer, more sustainable world. 

Another Merit award was given to the Karlstad municipality and the Swedish Civil Contigencies Agency, while a Letter of Distinction was handed to Tehran Disaster Management and Mitigation Organization (TDMMO). The top Sasakawa Award was shared between Belo Horizonte City, Brazil, and the National Alliance for Risk Reduction and Response Initiative (NARRI) from Bangladesh.  

The five awardees were selected from 10 cities and municipalities, four individuals and 14 institutions and projects which were nominated for the 2013 Awards. Aside from Saint Bernard, the other nominees from the Philippines are Butuan City, Philippine Senate Committee on Climate Change, and SM Supermalls. Saint Bernard was nominated to the Sasakawa Awards by Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) and the Assistance and Cooperation for Community Resilience and Development (ACCORD).  

St. Bernard Municipality’s local chief executive, Rico Rentuza, attributes the success of DRR initiatives in the municipality to its partnership with various organisations, and emphasized that it takes a continuing collective undertaking for high-risk communities like St. Bernard to build their capacities to be more resilient and safe.   

“The increased level of preparedness and risk reduction can be due to our long-standing partnerships with CARE Nederland and its local partner, ACCORD, who helped us design and implement a longterm community-based DRR program, and the support of ECHO, the European Commission’s Humanitarian Aid Agency. The disaster preparedness program of ECHO, DIPECHO, supported us for 3 cycles until we were able to integrate DRR in our long-term planning process,” Rentuza said.

He also added that the municipality’s DRR program is complemented by specific components like GIZ’s early warning system, and resettlement and relocation support by PRC, JICA, Habitat, and Gawad Kalinga. The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration and the Mines and Geosciences Bureau provided scientific inputs on risk assessment. The Department of Interior and Local Government has contributed to the municipality’s efforts to mainstream DRR in local development planning, and the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council has motivated them to persevere in improving the quality of their work. Since 2008, the municipality has been recognized through the Gawad Kalasag Award, for its excellence in DRR.  

Rentuza concluded that, “The people and the local government of Saint Bernard are most honoured to receive this very important award. Receiving this most prestigious award is the next best thing, the “icing on the cake,” to knowing that with the help of others, we have transformed ourselves into a more resilient and safer community.”  

 

View and download a PDF version of this article here.

Ilang Tala Hinggil sa Modyul

Sa pagtatapos ng tatlong (3) modyul at sa pagkabuo ng contingency plan (CP) ng komunidad, ang mga sumusunod ang karaniwang tanong ng lahat:

Pagkatapos ng modyul: “Pagbubuo ng Contingency Plan,” dapat may nabuo at nakasulat nang contingency plan ang komunidad. Hindi nga lamang ito matatawag na isa nang mahusay na contingency plan na maaasahan sa panahon ng disaster sapagkat hindi pa ito dumaan sa pagsubok. Ang pagsusubok sa ilang bahagi ng contingency plan ay ginagawa sa pamamagitan ng isang community drill. At sa pagsasagawa lamang ng isang community drill malalaman kung epektibo ang nabuong contingency plan para sa kanilang komunidad.

Ang modyul na ito tungkol sa “Gabay sa Pagsasagawa ng isang Community drill” ang huling bahagi ng serye ng mga modyul ng Disaster Preparedness at Contingency Planning na ibinabahagi sa komunidad upang makabuo sila ng isang epektibong contingency plan. Dahil dito, may mga bahagi ng contingency plan na tinitiyak na makasanayan ng komunidad upang maging epektibo ang pagsasagawa nito sa aktwal na sitwasyon. Kabilang sa mga bahagi ng contingency plan na dapat kinakabisa ng komunidad ay ang early warning system (EWS) at plano ng paglikas o evacuation plan.

Ang modyul na ito ang makatutulong sa gagawing pagsubok ng komunidad sa kanilang CP sa pamamagitan ng isang community drill.

Ang kondukta sa modyul na ito ay hindi katulad sa dalawang naunang modyul. May pagkakahawig ito sa ikatlong modyul na workshop ang pangunahing pamamaraan ng pagsasanay. Dito, ang kondukta ng drill ang mismong porma ng training at ang pagkatuto ay sinusukat mula sa resulta ng pagtatasa sa isinagawang community drill. Ang pagiging matagumpay ng isang community drill ay nakasalalay hindi lamang sa mga nag-oorganisa nito at sa mga miyembro ng BDCC kundi maging sa buong komunidad. Sa aktwal, malaki ang papel na gagampanan ng buong komunidad sa ikatatagumpay ng aktibidad na ito. Sa kabuuan, ang pagsuporta o di-pagsuporta ng sinuman sa nabanggit (nag-oorganisa ng drill, BDCC, at buong komunidad) ay mangangahulugan ng epektibo o di-epektibong pagsasagawa ng community drill.

Mahalagang tandaan natin na ang aktwal na community drill ay idinaraos sa loob lamang ng dalawa (2) hanggang tatlong (3) oras. Bagamat maikli lang ang pagsasagawa ng aktwal na drill, ang paghahanda naman upang maidaos ito ay hakbang-hakbang na gagawin sa loob ng halos dalawang buwan. Nahahati sa tatlong bahagi ang buong modyul na ito:
1. Paghahanda para sa community drill;
2. Pagsubok sa kakayahang tumugon sa disaster; at
3. Mga gawain pagkatapos ng community drill.

 

View, read, and download the fourth module here.

Ilang Tala Hinggil sa Modyul

Ang modyul na ito ay pagsasalin ng mga napag-aralan mula sa naunang modyul ng Disaster Preparedness. Kaiba sa naunang modyul ng Disaster Preparedness, and modyul na ito ay gabay sa aktwal na pagbubuo ng isang contingency plan. Pagkatapos ng modyul na ito, ang mga kalahok ay may mabubuo nang contingency plan.

Ang serye ng mga pagsasanay ay naglalayong makabuo ng isang contingency plan na angkop sa pangangailangan at kakayahan ng mga taga-komunidad. Ang contingency plan ay isang planong ang layunin ay siguraduhin ang kahandaan at kakayahan ng komunidad upang maagap na makapagsagawa ng mga hakbang-pangkaligtasan bilang paghahanda sa panganib, at makapag-organisa at magsagawa ng epektibo at napapanahong tulong sa panahon ng disaster.

Mula sa mga kaalaman tungkol sa mga konsepto at mga terminolohiya ng DRR, at sa kasanayang kakailanganin upang mailarawan ang aktwal
na mga hazard at epekto nito sa komunidad, bubuuin sa ikatlong modyul ang mga aksyong kailangang gawin at ipatupad upang maging handa ang komunidad sa disaster. Ang mga workshop sa modyul ng contingency planning ay lalahukan ng mga susing tao sa komunidad kabilang ang mga miyembro ng BDCC, ilang guro, mga kinatawan ng iba’t ibang sektor gaya ng kabataan, kababaihan, senior citizen, at iba pang mga may kasanayan o kakayahang makatulong sa pagbuo ng CP. Sa mga workshop dito sa modyul ng contingency planning pagsasama-samahin at paguugnayugnayin ang mga resulta ng mga workshop sa dalawang naunang modyul. Babalik-aralan at patototohanan ang mga naunang resulta ng mga workshop at magbubuo ng mga aktwal na hakbang at alituntunin upang maisalin ang plano sa aktwal na pagpapapababa ng risk ng komunidad. Ito ang aktwal na paglalapat ng mga plano sa kalagayan ng komunidad na may kaakibat na aktwal na aksyon at pagpapakilos sa BDCC.

Tandaan natin na ang mga susunod na sesyon ay iba sa nakagawian sa naunang mga modyul. Ang mga sumusunod na session plan ay magsisilbing gabay lamang sa pagdaraos nang magkakasunod na pulong ng mga susing tao ng komunidad upang makalap at masinop nila ang lahat na impormasyon na kailangan upang mabuo ang contingency plan. Ang nakasaad na tagal ng sesyon ay pagtantya lamang sa tagal ng idaraos ng mga pulong. Mas mainam kung ang lahat ng kalahok sa pulong ay makapaglalaan ng sapat na panahon upang matapos ang mga naitakdang gawain para sa araw na iyon nang walang pagmamadali.

 

View, read, and download the third module here.

Ilang Tala Hinggil sa Modyul

Ang modyul na ito ay binubuo ng mga sesyon na tutulong sa pagpapahusay ng kasanayan ng mga kalahok upang maging handa sa mga panganib na nakaamba sa kanilang mga komunidad. Sa modyul na ito, ang mga konsepto at mga pamamaraan tungkol sa gawaing pagbawas ng risk ay gagamitin ng mga kalahok upang maisagawa, sa pamamagitan pangunahin ng mga workshop at mga pagsasanay, ang mga kasanayan sa paghahanda tulad ng community risk assessment, early warning system, evacuation planning, contingency planning, at iba pa. Pagkatapos ng modyul na ito, ang mga kalahok ay magkakaroon na ng ilang mahahalagang bahagi ng isang barangay contingency plan (kung sila ay mga taga-barangay) o municipal contingency plan (kung ang mga kalahok sa pagsasanay ay mga taga-Municipal Disaster Coordinating Council).

Ang mga kasanayan na matututunan sa modyul na ito ay tutulong upang maging mataas ang antas ng kahandaan ng mga kalahok, at makatugon sila nang mas mahusay sa mga pangangailangan sa panahon ng disaster. Inaasahan ding batay sa mga pagsasanay at workshop, lalong makikilalang mga kalahok ang mga disaster na maaaring mangyari sa kanilang komunidad at mabibigyan sila ng batayan upang makapagdesisyon kung anong uri ng tugon ang kaya nilang isagawa sa oras ng disaster.

Bago mag-umpisa ang training sa modyul na ito, ipaliliwanag ng tagapagpadaloy na sa loob ng tatlong araw na training ay magkakaroon ng isang earthquake drill. Hindi sasabihin kung kailan ito gagawin. Kailangang maghanda ang mga kalahok at ituturo ng tagapagpadaloy kung ano ang mga dapat nilang gawin kapag kunwaring lumilindol na.

 

View, read, and download the second module here.

Pambungad

Sa gawaing disaster risk reduction (DRR) o pagbabawas ng risk ng disaster sa mga komunidad, nilalayong mapababa ang bulnerabilidad ng mga mamamayan at mapataas ang kanilang kapasidad sa paghahanda at pagharap sa mga negatibong epekto na dulot ng mga panganib o hazard.

Kadalasan, ang mga lugar na paulit-ulit na tinatamaan ng mga hazard ay mga mahihirap na komunidad. Hirap ang mga komunidad na ito na bumangon pagkatapos masalanta ng sunud-sunod na disaster na kumikitil ng buhay at sumasalanta ng kabuhayan.

Maraming bayan at munisipyo sa Pilipinas ang hindi ligtas sa paulitulit na pananalanta ng mga disaster tulad ng bagyo, baha, landslide at lindol. Ito ay dahil sa ang lokasyon ng bansang Pilipinas ay nasa tabi ng malawak na Pacific Ocean kung saan namumuo ang napakaraming bagyo. Dagdag pa rito, ang ating bansa ay nakapaloob sa tinatawag na Pacific Ring of Fire kung saan matatagpuan ang mga aktibong bulkan at mga earthquake fault na nagdudulot nang malalakas na lindol at tsunami. Dahil sa bulnerableng kalagayan, malaki ang pangangailangang maihanda ang mga mamamayan sa mga pagkakataong nangyayari ang mga hazard upang mabawasan ang mga pinsalang dulot ng mga ito. Malaki ang pangangailangang mapalakas ang mga kapasidad ng mga mamamayan upang mabawasan ang mga risk ng disaster at mapabilis ang kanilang pagbangon mula sa pagkakasalanta.

 

Ano ang Proyektong ACCORD?

Ang Proyektong ACCORD o “Strengthening Assets and Capacities of Communities and Local Governments for Resilience to Disasters” ay naglalayong palakasin ang mga kapasidad ng mga komunidad na bawasan ang risk ng mga disaster. Ipinatutupad ang proyektong ito sa 16 na barangay at 20 paaralan sa mga munisipyo ng Dingalan sa Aurora, Calabanga sa Camarines Sur at St. Bernard sa Southern Leyte.  Pagsasanay sa Disaster Preparedness at Contingency Planning.

Ang proyekto ay sinusuportahan ng European Commission’s Humanitarian Aid Department (ECHO) at ng Corporate Network for Disaster Response
(CNDR).

Ang tatlong munisipyong sakop ng proyekto ay matatagpuan sa eastern seaboard ng bansa na madalas daanan ng mga bagyong nagmumula sa Pacific. Ang mga lugar na ito ay hindi lang minsang nakaranas ng mga matitinding landslide, baha, bagyo at lindol. At katulad ng karamihan ng mga bayan sa Pilipinas, ang mga bayang nabanggit ay mahihirap at kulang sa kakayahang magsagawa ng mga hakbang upang mabawasan ang mga risk at makabangon pagkatapos masalanta ng disaster.

Sa layunin ng ACCORD PROJECT na mapalakas ang kakayahan ng mga mamamayan sa mga bayang ito, kinilalang isang natatanging paraan ang gawaing community training. Batay sa karanasan ng proyekto, napatunayang ang community training ay isa sa mga epektibong pamamaraan upang palakasin ang kapasidad ng mga komunidad na madalas masalanta ng mga disaster.

Ang pagbibigay ng tamang kaalaman sa pamamagitan ng wastong pagsasagawa ng mga training sa mga barangay at munisipyo, partikular sa mga miyembro ng barangay disaster coordinating council (BDCC) at municipal disaster coordinating council (MDCC), mga guro at estudyante sa mga paaralan, at sa karamihan ng miyembro ng komunidad, ay naging daan upang sila ay ma-organisa bilang disaster-resilient communities o mga komunidad na may kakayahang umangkop sa kalagayan at mabilis na makabawi mula sa pinsalang dulot ng disaster.

Hindi naging madali para sa proyekto ang pagbibigay ng mga training sa mga barangay. Nariyan ang kahirapan sa pagsalin ng mga salitang Inggles sa salitang nauunawaan ng mga taga-komunidad, ang kahirapan sa pagpapaintindi sa ilang terminong siyentipiko (scientific term), ang kahirapan sa pagkakaroon ng libreng panahon ng mga kalahok, at marami pang ibang problema kaugnay sa maayos na pagdaraos ng training.

Nguni’t dahil sa ang community-based training ang ubod ng ACCORD PROJECT, naging malikhain ang proyekto sa paggampan ng gawaing ito. Isang natukoy na paraan upang matugunan ang mga suliranin ay ang  Community-Based Disaster Risk Management pagkakaroon ng mga Community Facilitator (CF). Ang mga CF ay binubuo ng mga miyembro at lider ng komunidad na may interes, kakayahan, at panahon upang dumalo sa iba’t ibang mga training tungkol sa pagbabawas ng risk ng disaster o disaster risk reduction (DRR). Sila ang naging katuwang ng proyekto sa iba’t ibang gawain kabilang na ang pagmomobilisa ng mga kasamahan sa komunidad para sa drill o para sa pagpapatupad ng small-scale mitigation project. Partikular sa pagsasagawa ng community training, ang mga CF ang tumutulong sa pag-aangkop ng mga kurso sa sitwasyon ng komunidad. Kinalaunan ay tumulong na rin sila sa pagdaos ng mga training o kaya’y kasama na bilang miyembro ng training team. Mula sa karanasan nila, nakukuha ang ilang mga mahahalagang termino at mga halimbawang nauunawaan ng lahat ng taga-barangay. Sila ang naging ugnay at katuwang ng mga staff ng ACCORD PROJECT upang mapahusay at mapadali ang pagsasagawa ng mga training sa barangay.

Naging bahagi ng ACCORD PROJECT ang pagkakaroon ng serye ng mga capacity-building activity para sa mga BDCC, MDCC at CF. Nakita rin ang malaking pangangailangan para sa pagkakaroon ng mga instructional at reference material upang lalong mapadali para sa mga mga piling miyembro ng mga DCC, at mga CF ang pagbibigay ng training. Kaugnay nito, naglabas ang ACCORD PROJECT ng mga instructional material katulad ng mga flipchart, photo set at mga poster na ibinahagi sa mga komunidad na sakop nito. Sa pamamagitan ng mga instructional material na ito, mas madaling maipaaabot ang mahahalagang mensahe sa mga estudyante, mamamayan at mga opisyal ng barangay at munisipyo.

Maganda ang iniluwal na resulta ng labinlimang buwang proyektong ito. Sa mga munisipyo ng St. Bernard at Calabanga, naging aktibo ang lokal na pamahalaan hindi lamang sa pagbuo ng kanilang contingency plan kundi pati na rin sa pagkokonsidera sa DRR bilang bahagi ng kanilang taunang pagpaplano. Naging aktibo rin ang karamihan ng barangay sa tatlong munisipyo sa pagbuo ng kani-kanilang mga contingency plan at paglahok sa ilang mga small-scale mitigation project tulad ng pagtatanim ng mga bakawan at mga punong-kahoy, at pagtatayo ng mga gabion.

Sa mga pakikipanayam sa mga miyembro ng komunidad, nalaman ng proyekto na marami ang may pananaw na naging mapagpasya (crucial) ang pagkatuto nila mula sa serye ng mga training. Noon, inisip nilang  Pagsasanay sa Disaster Preparedness at Contingency Planning pananakot lamang ang itinuturo sa mga training at walang inihahaing mga posibleng hakbang upang makaangkop ang komunidad kung kaya’t magiging kanya-kanya lamang ang kanilang pagtugon sa mga hazard. Sa pagsasara ng proyekto, dahil na rin sa paglahok nila sa mga training, naging positibo na ang kanilang pananaw dahil ang mga kaalamang naibahagi sa kanila ay nakapawi ng takot at nakatulong upang malaman nila ang mga hakbang na dapat nilang gawin bilang paghahanda sa pagdating ng mga mapaminsalang disaster — hindi lamang bilang mga indibidwal kundi bilang isang komunidad.

 

Bakit may Training Manual?

Sadyang bahagi ng layunin ng ACCORD PROJECT ang pagpapahusay ng kakayahan ng mga BDCC, MDCC at CF sa pagbibigay ng training upang maihanda sila sa kanilang tungkulin. Inaasahang ipagpapatuloy ng mga BDCC, MDCC at CF ang pagbibigay ng training at pagbabahagi ng mga mahahalagang kaalaman sa mga kababayan nila at maging sa mga katabing barangay. Sa ganitong paraan matitiyak na maipagpapatuloy nila ang sinimulan ng proyekto.

Ito ang naging layunin sa paglalabas ng Training Manual na ito: ang makatulong na mapadali at mapagaan ang pagdaraos ng mga gawaing  DRRtraining bilang isang paraan sa pagpapalakas ng kapasidad ng mga bulnerableng komunidad upang matugunan ang kanilang sariling kalagayan at mga pangangailangan.

Tinutugunan nito ang pangangailangan para sa isang gabay sa pagbibigay ng community-based DRR training kung saan ang isa sa mahahalagang layunin ay ang makabuo ng contingency plan. Gabay ito upang makabuo ng disenyo para sa balak na isagawang training. Kumpleto ang mga modyul at mga session plan na isinulat ayon sa lohikal na pagkakasunud-sunod nito. Ito ay isang simpleng gabay na madaling sundan at maaaring ilapat sa mga pangangailangan ng ibang mga barangay at mga organisasyong DRR, kung kinakailangan.

Ang mga nilalamang modyul at session plan ay dumaan sa mahabang proseso ng pananaliksik at pagkukumpara sa mga modyul ng ibang organisasyon, pagbubuo ng sariling modyul ayon sa pangangailangan  Community-Based Disaster Risk Management ng proyekto, pilot testing, at pagpipirmi ng nilalaman. Sa pagsasagawa ng sunud-sunod na training sa lahat ng barangay na sakop ng ACCORD PROJECT, idinadaan ang bawat isa sa pagtatasa upang mapulot ang mga aral mula sa mga ito. Ang mga aral na ito ay ginamit upang lalong pagyamanin ang mga modyul na nilalaman ng manual na ito.

Ang manual ay isang sanggunian (reference material) para sa lahat ng nagbibigay ng DRR training. Madali itong gamitin bilang sanggunian ng mga nagbibigay ng DRR training dahil simple ang pagsalin at pagbuo ng mga kahulugan ng mga terminong syentipiko na ginamit dito. May paglalarawan din sa mga konsepto at salitang mahirap maintindihan ng karaniwang tao. Ang mga pakahulugan ng mga salita at mga halimbawa ay batay sa iba’t ibang libro, pananaliksik, at mga kasulatang mapagkakatiwalaan at wasto tulad ng mga inilimbag ng Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Service Administration (PAGASA), Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs), at iba pa. Binabanggit din sa bawat session plan ang mga pinagsangguniang materyal upang mabalikan at mapag-aralang mabuti ng sinumang nais pang palawigin ang kanyang kaalaman tungkol sa mga paksang tinatalakay rito.

Isa rin itong sourcebook o pagmumulan ng mga datos, mga halimbawa, ehersisyo, at pamamaraan na pawang mahalaga upang madaling makapagsagawa ng mga DRR training.

Sa kabuuan, isa itong dokumento ng karanasan ng proyektong ACCORD at ng mga mamamayang gumampan sa kanilang mga tungkulin upang mapalakas ang kanilang kakayahang harapin ang mga epekto ng disaster.

Saklolo!
Ang manual na ito ay hindi lamang para sa mga CF kundi para sa lahat ng nagsasagawa ng proyektong DRR sa mga komunidad. Ang manual na ito ay may mga katangiang madaling unawain, simple ang pagkasulat at pangkaraniwan ang mga halimbawang ginamit.

Bagamat para sa lahat ang manual na ito, pangunahing nakalaan pa rin ito para sa mga CF, BDCC at MDCC na magpapatuloy ng gawaing training sa kanilang lugar, mayroon mang proyektong ACCORD o wala. Pagsasanay sa Disaster Preparedness at Contingency Planning Sa pagtatapos ng proyekto, ang manual ang magsisilbing takbuhan ng mga miyembro ng BDCC, MDCC, at mga CF sa pagbibigay ng mga training sa komunidad. Ang manual na ito ay makatutulong sa mga problemang maaaring kaharapin sa pagdaraos ng training sa komunidad.

 

View, read, and download the first module here.