by ACCORD, Inc.
When lockdown measures were implemented to prevent the spread of COVID-19, even development projects were halted. Community-based trainings and workshops implemented by actors from outside the barangays were not allowed as they could be carriers of the virus. Local leaders play a critical role in a time when external support is limited and when the community’s safety is prioritized.
CARE local partner organization, ACCORD, Inc., ensures that potential leaders are recognized and gradually help them develop their capacities, self-confidence, and credibility. ACCORD shared, “Organizing and building capacities of local champions, community facilitators, and project steering committees at the barangay level was done as part of the project’s adaptive and sustainability measures. When staff’s mobility was restricted, valuable assistance was provided by the community champions – not only in the implementation of emergency responses on the ground but also in setting up regular project activities with our field teams. The project intends to engage and work with the same champions throughout the project, whose capacities for local leadership will remain, even after project closure.”
Among these local leaders is Josefina, 65, who serves as a Barangay Health Worker in Cullit, Gattaran in the province of Cagayan. Her daily duties include monitoring the health of children and elderly persons in their community. Since resources are scarce, she also helps out in medicine allocation, prioritizing the old and the sick. Now that there is a pandemic, she also helped out in the Social Amelioration Program (SAP) of the government, ensuring that the most vulnerable are included in the list. Josefina said that what she does in her barangay brings her happiness because she was able to provide help to her fellow senior citizens, especially now that the pandemic made serving her community more challenging. She recalled that her worst experience of a calamity was in 2012. She shared, “Our community and livestock had to be evacuated in higher grounds, and whatever was left behind were covered in thick mud after being submerged in the flood. Our family and neighbors had to clean the waist-deep mud in our houses, and had to sleep on the streets for about three weeks.” Because of this, she recognizes the importance of disaster preparedness, “the INCREASE project helped our community in planning and preparing for hazards and disasters.”
To also continue actively involving the communities despite the restrictions, INCREASE also responded to COVID-19. The timing of the pandemic coincided with lean season when farmers had to engage in alternative income-generating activities such as buying and selling vegetables. With lockdowns and restrictions in accessing goods, such activities are not allowed. For Josefina, “the rice packs helped my community, especially those whose livelihoods were affected because of the travel restrictions and
lockdown. Meanwhile, the COVID-19 information materials remind my community to follow health protocols and what to do to protect themselves from the virus.”
Involvement of local actors also includes inviting them in knowledge exchange sessions that are relevant in their current context. Made possible through the Resilience and Innovation Learning Hub (RILHUB), INCREASE partner LGU in Cagayan was able to attend relevant webinars on resilience and DRR – covering topics such as Contingency Planning during COVID-19, Setting Up Community Quarantine Facilities, and Camp Coordination and Camp Management Training. Such information exchange sessions were seen timely by local actors as these webinars coincided with their preparation timelines for updating municipal disaster risk reduction plans, comprehensive development plans, comprehensive land use plans, and local climate change action plans – undertakings defined as actual project outputs in INCREASE’s result framework, and areas in disaster governance INCREASE’s technical assistance seeks to enhance.
While activity implementation under INCREASE remains restricted, it is through these emergency responses and knowledge exchange sessions that ACCORD was able to check-in, and assess the evolving needs of INCREASE barangays in actual emergencies. Local leaders were also more involved in the project and appreciate its flexibility in delivering the appropriate emergency response given the urgent situation.
Story by: Agri-Aqua Development Coalition
Jovelyn Malinao, 49 years old, has been Brgy. Gamut’s Chairperson since 2013, after serving as a Barangay Councilor for 9 years. But unlike other public servants with aspirations of public service, Jovelyn never imagined that she can lead a barangay. “Before, I was shy as I was a mere housewife. I don’t usually talk to people. I prefer to stay at home, take care of my children, do our chores like washing our clothes, and take care of my husband,” said Jovelyn. It was only after her friends and other individuals in the barangay have encouraged her that the thought came to her mind. She finally decided to run for public office when her husband also told her, “Go and try it.”
Jovelyn understands the barriers that women have to go through to become leaders. “Before, leadership is only for men,” said Jovelyn. Women face challenges and could not easily participate in community activities. “First, women are hindered from participating in community activities when there’s no support coming from the family, especially when the husband doesn’t give consent. Secondly, women always think of the family’s livelihood first. When they don’t have enough income to support the family, they prioritize the family’s needs and they can’t participate in community activities. Thirdly, women want to focus more on their children and their needs.”
Jovelyn may relate to the challenges to women’s community participation but strongly feels the need to serve their barangay. She knows that a woman leader and women, in general, can do more. “I believe that both sexes have the same concern for constituents. But, I think it is best that we give women a chance to become leaders because women can easily encourage participation from the community. It can be compared to a home when children would run to their mothers when they have problems because mothers are empathetic and understanding,” she shared.
To overcome these challenges, women leaders must step up and encourage the participation of other women in community activities. Jovelyn focused her efforts on information education campaigns and communal learning activities such as trainings, seminars, and workshops. She personally went to the women in her barangay to motivate them to join in these activities. For her, everyone should know that women have equal rights as men in accessing opportunities. “It is important to make women understand that they have rights to lift up themselves and for the men to know that they should not hinder what the women want to achieve,” said Jovelyn. Because of Jovelyn’s efforts, along with the support of her barangay council, more women in Brgy. Gamut participate in community activities and also take leadership roles.
Brgy. Gamut, in Barobo, Surigao del Sur, is one of the barangays supported by Philippines: Increasing the Resilience to Natural Hazards (INCREASE). INCREASE aims to increase the resilience of 45,000 women and men small-scale farmers and fishers, including 720 extreme poor female-headed households, to natural hazards and the effects of climate change. This project is implemented by CARE Philippines, together with Assistance and Cooperation for Community Resilience and Development, Inc (ACCORD), Cordillera Disaster Response and Development Services (CORDIS), Leyte Center for Development, Inc (LCDE), and Agri-Aqua Development Coalition – Mindanao (AADC), through the support of SKala Initiatives of Germany.
This is an infographic of the latest public storm warning signal used by PAGASA. It aims to familiarize communities with the potential impact when any Public Storm Warning Signal Number is hoisted or put in effect in an area, and therefore make preparedness measures when a public storm hits.
Please use or access the file below if you would like to have it save a sot copy of the file.
INCREASE or “Philippines – Increasing Resilience to Natural Hazards” aims to increase the resilience of 45,00 women and men small scale farmers and fishers, including 720 extremely poor female-headed households, to natural hazards and the effect of climate change. The project will run from 2019-2021 in different parts of the Philippines, namely 36 barangays across 8 municipalities in the provinces of Cagayan, Mt. Province, Northern Samar, and Surigao del Sur. Its project components and activities include early warning systems, alternative livelihood, and climate and disaster governance.
Strengthening BDRRMC capacities as a sustainable mechanism for IRM
by Brgy. Captain Edilberto Lacaba, Brgy. Badiangay, Sta. Fe
Barangay Badiangay is one of 20 barangays in the municipality of Sta Fe that is high-risk to flooding. It is four kilometres away from the town center, and situated in the interior part of the municipality. To reach Badiangay, one needs to ride a motorbike or “habal-habal,” the primary mode of transportation going in and out of the barangay. There are three sitios in the barangay namely Sitios Kamalig, Batoon and Proper. A total of 175 households or 710 individuals make up the whole barangay in which majority are children.
Both sides of the road leading to the barangay are bordered by rice fields, with a few houses dotting the sides of the road. Areas that used to be planted with coconuts have now been broken up to small patches of land planted with vegetables and root crops. Majority of the people work in rice fields as tenants or farm laborers. As farm laborers, they get paid P150-200 pesos for a whole day’s work. During lean months they work as laborers, house helpers or sales ladies in the neighbouring town of Palo or Tacloban. There is no water system that brings water into the homes directly. Drinking water in the barangay is delivered once a week by a truck from the Leyte Metro Water District (LMWD). The residents pay P5.00 per container of water. For bathing and washing, they fetch water from an open well near their houses. This has been the situation in the barangay for the longest time and is considered as normal for everyone.
Such is the situation of the barangay which Edilberto Lacaba calls home.
Edilberto Lacaba is the soft spoken and shy barangay chairman of Badiangay. Once you engage him in a discussion, however, he speaks with seriousness and sincerity. He explains that Barangay Badiangay is a low lying barangay surrounded by the Bobonon River from neighbouring barangay San Isidro and Dapdap and Malaihaw rivers from barangay Gapas, all in the eastern part of the barangay. Water coming from these rivers traverses their barangay thus with only a few hours of strong rain, flood is an inevitable hazard they experience. This constant flooding exacerbates the already difficult economic and physical conditions of the residents of Barangay Badiangay.
According to some elderly in the barangay, in the 1960’s they already experienced flooding. Back then they just stayed within the barangay and wait for flood waters to recede. They would only evacuate to the barangay proper or in some private houses that have second floors when water is knee or waist high. Flooding, at that time, does not reach the barangay proper. Only the two sitios (Batoon and Kamalig) were heavily flooded. Kap Edilberto says it’s different now. Flood waters reach up to 8 feet high, covering their roofs and also reaching the barangay proper. When Typhoon Senyang hit Leyte in the last week of December of 2014, it brought the worst flooding ever experienced in the barangay. The whole barangay was inundated. Left with no choice, they evacuated to the municipal gymnasium of Sta. Fe. Most of their belongings were left behind because they could only bring what they can carry. The fathers were left to take care of their farm animals and other valuables left behind. They built bamboo rafts and stayed on guard of their properties until the flood water subsided.
This was also the time when Edilberto, then the first Kagawad of Badiangay, was forced to act as the head of their barangay because of the untimely death of their Barangay Captain. He did not wish to be a First Kagawad in the first place. Being a Barangay Captain was farthest from his mind. His reluctance was based on his idea that being a Chairman is an enormous responsibility and this would require a 24-7 commitment from him. He was not sure then if he was up to that challenge. But he did heed the challenge after the people of Badiangay showed their support for him.
When ACCORD conducted the series of trainings on Disaster Risk Reduction as part of Promoting Recovery and Enhancing Resilience of the Most Vulnerable Communities that are Most Affected by Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines, the barangay officials of Badiangay were not so enthusiastic to participate. Their initial reaction was the usual reaction ACCORD gets from almost all barangays and municipalities encountered for the first time. Flooding was a normal occurrence in their barangay and they have gotten used to it and besides, they have already attended numerous DRR trainings conducted by other organizations. But out of respect to ACCORD, the trainings pushed through.
As the series of trainings unfold, they started to see the difference. They observed that the activities during workshops are hands-on and based on their actual experiences. Every activity involved the community’s participation, and they can proudly claim every output as their own. Above all, the successive DRR trainings by ACCORD made them realize that they can do something to minimize the ill effects of flooding in their barangay, that they have capacities to improve their situation. After the community-based DRM training for barangay officials in Sta. Fe, Kap Edilberto surprised us when he made the commitment to accept the challenge posed by ACCORD. He will try to the best of his abilities to pursue the path towards resilience.
Indeed, because of the firm commitment Kap Edilberto made, and the changes showed by his fellow barangay officials, the BDRRMC of Badiangay evolved into a learning and responsible organization. Even Kap Edilberto said that BDRRMC officials and members were not active at first, but they showed they can change. Even the community members were not as participative at first. So much so that when ACCORD chose Badiangay to be one of two barangays to conduct a community flood drill, Kap Edilberto was worried if they could muster the support of the majority of the residents to participate in the drill. But he was challenged because this is what their community needs.
The community flood drill was nothing but successful. BDRRMC members and the whole community actively participated in all of the community activities leading to the drill. He was amazed at the seemingly unending stream of volunteers to do all the technical jobs required and all the public awareness activities that had to be done to ensure that everyone in the community was adequately informed. He also acknowledged that part of the strengthening process of the BDRRMC is the opportunity it provided to work with the MDRRMC. And they are happy to note that the MDRRMC has started to recognize its role in supporting the actions of the BDRRMCs.
When asked about his reflections of the project, Kap Edilberto said that what he appreciates most was the series of DRR capacity-building activities that aimed at strengthening their BDRRMC. He still could not believe that they were able to formulate their Contingency Plan and was able to test it through the community drill. Lessons learned were that if people are informed, they will participate. If the BDRRMC members understand DRR, and their responsibilities, they will eventually be active. Just like him, he said he also learned by doing. And what one does must be propelled by a sincere resolve to increase the capacities of a very high risk and vulnerable community.
To view and download a copy of this story, please click here.
Integrated Risk Management Training Manual (4 modules) Contents:
- Module 1: Community-Based Disaster Risk Management
- Module 2: Community Risk Assessment
- Module 3: Contingency Planning
- Module 4: Mainstreaming DRR, CCA, at EMR sa mga planong pangkaunlaran
This manual is written for facilitators who will conduct training in communities that are vulnerable to various hazards.
It may also be useful for members of disaster risk reduction and management bodies in schools and at the community, barangay, city, and municipal levels; and other non-government organizations.
It is written in Filipino and presents the technical subject matter in terms that are easily understandable, and in a format that is easily readable. Among other resources, it contains tools to conduct community risk assessments.
Register to access and download the modules here.
by Cherrylyn A. Libatique, Bgy. Caltayan, La Paz
Ako si Cherrylyn A. Libatique, dalawampu’t anim na taong gulang, naninirahan sa Barangay Caltayan, La Paz, Leyte. May asawa at apat na anak, dalawang babae at dalawang lalaki. Simple lang kaming namumuhay, mahirap ang buhay namin. Ang bahay namin ay munting kubo lamang at ang kinikita ng asawa ko ay kulang pa sa aming pang araw-araw na pangangailangan. Mas lalo pa kaming lumubog sa hirap nang dumating ang unos na bagyong Yolanda. Nawasak ang aming munting kubo at nawalan ng trabaho ang asawa ko. Naranasan naming matulog sa tangkil-tangkil* na bahay at magutom. Akala ko hindi na kami makakaahon sa hirap dahil wala na kaming mapagkukuhanan ng pagkakakitaan dahil sa kawalan ng niyog na siyang pangunahing hanapbuhay namin.
Malaki ang pasasalamat ko nang dumating ang NGO na ACCORD. Una, nagbigay sila ng pagkain at pangalawa ay ang shelter repair kit. Hindi ko inaasahan na makuha ako bilang myembro ng shelter roving team. Sa General Assembly sinabi ng ACCORD Staff na kailangan ng tatlong volunteer para sa team, dalawang karpintero o panday at isang babae na community mobilizer. Lahat ng tao sa barangay ay nagturuan, walang may gustong mag-boluntaryo. Nakita ako ng aming kapitan at sinabihan ako na ako ang mag-volunteer. Agad ko ding tinanggap ang sabi ng kapitan dahil hindi matatapos ang general assembly kapag walang magboluntaryo at gusto ko rin naman ang tumulong sa aming barangay. Nang makumpleto na ang shelter roving team saka sinabi ng ACCORD staff na may allowance ang tatlong volunteer, na ikinagulat ng lahat at pinanghinayangan. Hindi ko rin naman inaasahan na may allowance pero malaki ang pasasalamat ko dahil ang nakuha kong allowance ay nagamit ko upang maipaayos ang aming bahay at nakabili ng kaunting gamit para sa aking pamilya.
Dahil dito, malaki ang pasasalamat ko sa ACCORD sa oportunidad na ito kung saan nagsimula akong maging aktibo sa aming barangay. Sa mabuting palad ay sumusunod rin at nakikinig ang aking mga ka-barangay sa akin. Lumabas na may kakayahan naman pala ako at masaya ako na nakita ito ng ACCORD. At ang kakayahang yun marahil ang nakita nila upang kunin akong maging isang Community Facilitator (CF) sa susunod na phase ng proyekto nila. Sa aking pagkaunawa, batay sa paliwanag ng ACCORD, ang isang CF ay pangunahing magbibigay ng suporta sa kanila sa pagsagawa ng mga aktibidad sa barangay. Bilang isang CF, tutulong ako sa paglilinaw sa mga tanong ng ACCORD tungkol sa aming lugar at ako din ang magpapaliwanag o maglinaw sa mga kasamahan ko sa barangay kapag may hindi maintindihan sa mga sinasabi ng ACCORD.
Napakalaki ng naitulong ng oportunidad na ito upang maipalabas at mapalakas ang aking mga kakayahan o skills. Hindi na ako mahiyain at marunong na akong gumawa din ng mga gawaing pang-opisina (paper works) tulad ng training preparation, liquidation, pag-organisa ng mga nakuhang datos sa komunidad at iba pa. Nahasa din ang aking pagsasalita sa harap ng maraming tao at hindi na ako natatakot at nahihiya, tulad sa pagbibigay ng training sa disaster risk reduction (DRR). Bilang CF, tungkulin ko ding mag-aral ng mabuti upang magampanan ko ang aking papel na maglilinaw o makatulong sa pagpaunawa sa aking ka-barangay.
At isa sa pinakamatingkad kong natutunan ay ang tungkol DRR. Ngayon ay naiintindihan ko na kung ano ang hazard, bulnerabilidad, kapasidad, risk, climate change, resilience atbpa. Nakita ko din paano maghanda para sa community drill at ang mismong kondukta ng drill.
Nagustuhan kong mag-volunteer dahil sa dagdag na karanasan at kaalaman. Ang mga natutunan ko ay madadala ko hanggang sa aking pagtanda. Patuloy akong magiging actibo sa aming komunidad dahil sa nakuha kong mga kaalaman at mga natutunan sa ACCORD.
*Tangkil-tangkil – bahay na gawa sa kahit anong material na pinagtagpi-tagpi lamang
View and download a PDF version of this article here.
As the spread of COVID-19 has forced people indoors, life has become even more dangerous for women experiencing domestic violence, especially for those who are most marginalized. Not only are women experiencing this violence, but many children, who are also home from school, are witnessing and potentially experiencing domestic violence themselves. According to the UNFPA, six months of lockdowns could result in an additional 31 million cases of gender-based violence. The Metro Manila RGA COVID-19 findings (Sep 2020) also reported the following:
- There is an exponential increase in GBV risk and incidence due to COVID-19 and its interventions; a “shadow pandemic” that is severely underreported
- PNP data reported (15 March to 02 April): 391 cases of VAWC, 42 cases of rape
- There is disruption of services for VAWC survivors due to overburdened offices/facilities during COVID-19
As such, coming together to support women in this crisis is critical.
This month’s webinar is in line with CARE’s global anti-GBV campaign Together for Her, a call to action to stand in solidarity with women and girls around the world by supporting the global response against domestic violence during the time of COVID-19.
The project endeavors to address COVID-19’s “shadow pandemic” of gender-based violence in vulnerable communities in the Philippines. It will:
- Lessen GBV risk in households and provide social safety nets if women are GBV survivors through multi-purpose cash assistance;
- Raise awareness and strengthen local capacity to establish GBV referral pathways and community-based GBV monitoring; and
- Advocate for GBV services as essential, life-saving interventions in COVID-19 response on the local and national level.
In the Philippines, the Together for Her anti-GBV campaign is implemented by CARE and local partner ACCORD in Partners for Resilience communities in Malabon, Navotas, and Caloocan and with Pambansang Koalisyon ng Kababaihan sa Kanayunan (PKKK) in Salcedo, Eastern Samar, Basey, Western Samar, and Sta. Catalina, Negros Oriental.
This pamphlet was used to disseminate information and highlight the necessary information for communities and stakeholders to progress the prevention of Gender-Based Violence, particularly in the barangay level.
View and download the full document here.
When Typhoon Monang battered the coastal village of Sabang in1993, massive swells from the ocean engulfed houses near the shore and killed scores of residents. One local recalls fleeing her home under the heavy downpour together with her cousin, and losing grip of the other girl as raging flood waters swept them away. Her cousin wasfound dead the next day. This grim episode in the villagers’ collective memory has left them fearful of news of approaching storms. Preventing such tragedies was ACCORD’s mission in Calabanga, a municipality in Camarines Sur that is home to 11 storm surgeprone coastal villages, one of which is Sabang. This was done by implementing a Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) program complemented by an Ecosystem Management and Restoration (EMR) strategy.
This approach requires the active and meaningful participation of local communities. Empowering them to become active participants rather than victims means equipping them with the proper tools to assess their risks and vulnerabilities, and guiding them through capacity trainings and education. This will help them plan courses of action that are well-adapted to existing hazards and their own social context. Incorporating EMR into the process will augment the overall results of the program, for instance, by creating healthier ecosystems which may decrease disaster risks in both coastal and upland communities and also contribute to creating sustainable livelihood opportunities.
ACCORD supported building the capacity of residents against climate and disaster risks while mainstreaming the protection and management of natural resources in communities that are located near the shores and in upland areas. Part of its DRR program in Barangay Sabang is the introduction of mangrove reforestation as a small-scale mitigation measure to help reduce the adverse impacts of disasters in this time of anthropogenically-induced climate change.
A similar approach of rehabilitating ecosystems to complement disaster risk reduction and management was introduced in barangays and municipalities of Davao de Oro and Agusan del Sur. ACCORD and CARE implemented EMR activities such as riparian reforestation using indigenous tree species, slope erosion mitigation, and tree planting in portions of the upper Agusan River basin, and the Agusan Marsh.
Years after the implementation period of the projects described in this study – one project was launched in 2009 and the other, in 2015 – ACCORD continues to nurture ties with these communities and link them with opportunities for capacity building. The communities have also been able to sustain their EMR efforts.
View and download the full document here.
The global pandemic known as the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has affected millions worldwide. Presently in the Philippines, the number of cases continues to increase with 9.90% positivity rate and 1.85% mortality rate. The most vulnerable population is comprised of the elderly, those with comorbidities such as diabetes, hypertension, or those who are immunocompromised such as people living with HIV, as well as frontline workers in health and essential businesses.
Health system capacity has improved but continues to face challenges. The country currently ranks 20th in the John Hopkins case monitoring dashboard in terms of the country with the highest number of COVID-19 cases. The number of new cases remains variable with a recent spike following a 2-week decline. The Department of Health (DOH), however asserts that the health system has made significant progress not only in improving recovery rates and reducing COVID-19 mortality, but also in increasing hospitals’ capacity to serve suspected/ confirmed COVID-19 patients.
Currently, there is some 42.1% occupancy rate in wards, ICU, and isolation bedsfor COVID-19. Critical health facilities are now more equipped to provide better care to patients compared to during the early stages of the pandemic. However, testing and contact tracing capacity needs to be sustained to accurately
reflect the health situation. On September 2, the national government launched its official contact tracing app – staysafe.ph, while Local Government Units (LGU) also initiated individual contact tracing strategies/app in their respective communities.
The Philippine government utilized a public health-centered approach in mitigating the spread of the virus. Medical response includes strengthening health capacity by recruiting additional 20,000 health professionals, improved and expanded research capacity, and improved health care facilities and care protocols. Community quarantines include imposition of curfew, ban on mass gatherings, closures of schools or congregations, work suspension, and modified work arrangements.
COVID-19 has resulted in severe socio-economic consequences. The response to the pandemic transmission has negatively impacted the economy. Since March 2020, more than 3.3 million workers have lost their jobs. Unemployment rate is at 10% as of July 2020 which is double the rate of 5.4% last year of the same month. The loss of livelihood and lack of income opportunities has limited the access of the poorest families to food, water, and health services, and increased their reliance on aid. Some 7.6M reported involuntary hunger due to the crisis.10 School suspension displaced learners, barred access to supplementary feeding, and increased care work for women. Moreover, the affected population articulated increased feelings of anxiety and distress due to the continuing uncertainty of the situation. The pandemic situation shows disproportionate impact of the pandemic to women, children, and the most marginalized sectors of society.
The Philippines remains at risk to disasters and climate change impacts. The country ranks 3rd in the World Risk Report of 2018 and 5th in the Climate Risk Index of 2019.12 Tropical cyclones account for the largest disaster-related loss in the country. Some 20 tropical cyclones occur in the Philippine Area of Responsibility (PAR) per year. At least 6-9 incidents make landfall causing damage to urban and rural communities. Due to climate change, recent historical data in the country show that stronger typhoons are becoming even more frequent. Degraded ecosystems also exacerbate the impacts of the hazard. Moreover, cyclones are often accompanied by concurrent hazards including floods, flashfloods, and landslides. It also interacts with seasonal and climatological changes including monsoon seasons and El Nino Southern Oscillation (ENSO) phases. The typhoon season has already started. Typhoon Vongfong made landfall in May 2020. It was the first typhoon to hit the country this year. It affected almost 400,000 individuals and destroyed shelter, livelihoods, and health facilities. Emergency response activities were complicated by the ongoing quarantine measures and social distancing protocols. The experience from Typhoon Vongfong showed the need to integrate minimum health standards to better prepare for similar hazard events.
On 14 June 2020, the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) announced the start of the rainy season. The climate outlook shows that that there is more than 50-55% chance of La Nina either late October or November 2020 which may last through the first quarter of 2020. Above normal rainfall incidents can also be expected in the same period, particularly in December. Moreover, a total of 9 to 12 tropical cyclones are expected to enter the Philippine Area of Responsibility (PAR) until the end of the year. The onset of La Nina will cause tropical cyclones to form nearer land, thereby increasing the chance of landfall.
Capacities are stretched, and resources are dwindling. The whole country was placed under State of Calamity since 16 March 2020-12 September 2021.17 The protracted response due to COVID-19 has depleted resources of the government, private sector, and Civil Society Organizations. LGUs affected by the pandemic have already exhausted their Local Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Fund- Emergency Response Fund (LDRRMF-ERF) and have realigned their development funds to provide food assistance, conduct awareness-raising activities, and supplement health equipment and services. Medical and government front liners have provided continuous health and social services.
With the advent of the Typhoon season alongside the continuous COVID-19 response, there is a need to revisit plans to better manage risks and increase response capacities. Contingency plans (CP) can be reviewed to update risk assessments, integrate Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) protocols, and improve response arrangements. Other government plans including the DRRM Plans, Annual Investment Plans (AIP), and Comprehensive Development Plans (CDP) may also benefit from the review process.
The Contingency Planning Checklist is an attempt to summarize experiences from the ground into a diagnostic tool that supports the integration of COVID-19 protocols and lessons from the ongoing response into existing Contingency Plans. It is a list of recommendations across multiple sectors that can serve as an entry point in the CP updating process.
Read, view, and download the complete document here.
Originally Written: September 30, 2014
By Omer Mejia
Arsenio came in the front door of the two-storey barangay hall. He is searching for a familiar face in the reception area where we sit casually waiting for respondents to be interviewed. The tall and dark man with a strong physique, extended his arm for a handshake as we introduce ourselves as the team who will conduct interviews for the shelter assistance evaluation. He smiled gently, slightly moving the stitch marks of an inch long scar on his right lower right cheek. Arsenio Degamo is the barangay chairman of the local government of Barangay Nahawan, Clarin, Bohol province.
ACCORD’s team in the Bohol Earthquake Response sought the barangay LGU’s help in identifying respondents for key informant interview session. He came to ensure that we were able to find the people we need for the interviews, even to the extent of fetching them from their houses with his motorcycle. Barangay officials that were in the barangay hall were also equally helpful.
During an informal sharing of some lessons learned from the entire emergency response, the team shared about various kinds of interaction that we experienced with barangay LGUs.
Barangay Nahawan LGU stood out as one of the most supportive and active LGUs that the team worked with. The barangay officials are actively providing suggestions and support in conducting the house damage assessments, shelter materials and cash distributions, and house repairs.
There are more examples of outstanding local governments and their officials that have dedicated significant efforts, time and resources in responding to emergencies or reducing disaster risks in their communities. Of course, there will always be examples of local governments that may have not yet realized the importance of implementing an inclusive and participatory DRR. Some leaders may have narrow personal interests. Some may also be overwhelmed by the competing priorities and resources.
Nevertheless, public authorities, in general, are integral and primary actors in disaster risk reduction (DRR) and emergency response (ER). Humanitarian and other civil society organizations (CSO), on the other hand, provide valuable support in building the capacities of communities against disasters. Both are duty-bearers, entrusted with power and resources, to provide the required services from them in upholding the rights of the vulnerable and disaster-affected populations.
Many of the DRR and ER projects engage with the local governments. Usually, in the general logic of the project which starts from the activities (for example, “conduct community risk assessments”) which will then result to the desired outcomes (“communities have increased safety from climate-related hazards”), some good governance practices of LGUs, at least favorable to the project, are usually assumed from the very start of the project.
They are part of the “Assumptions and Risks” on which the whole logical intervention chain hangs (“Local government units are cooperative and willing to conduct disaster risk reduction”). Nevertheless, in all phases of all DRR or ER projects, a certain degree of good governance practice is assumed from local governments. LGUs are involved disaster risk reduction activities such as community risk assessments, trainings, contingency planning, hazard mitigation activities, public awareness, and mainstreaming of DRR into the local development plans. In emergency contexts, LGUs are involved in the selection process to identify direct beneficiaries of emergency assistance, and the facilitation and monitoring of various relief and recovery activities.
DRR and good governance are separate but mutually supportive objectives. Increasing the capacity of local governments and community members in DRR contributes, albeit indirectly, to the practice of good governance. On the hand, DRR provides a concrete context on which good governance principles can be applied. On the other hand, good governance is important, if not necessary, in making DRR successful, together with other development objectives. One can find in ACCORD’s set of training manuals on DRR that good governance practices are also incorporated in the principles, methods and procedures, such as the use of rights based approach as a framework and lens for DRR, inclusive and participatory methods in risk assessments, and so on. As UNDP puts it, “Governance is the umbrella under which disaster risk reduction takes place.”
Thus, it is also important to increase knowledge and capacity for governance. It should also be clear that governance not only involves local governments, but it also equally involves civil society and marginalized citizens.
It follows that governance objectives and its corresponding performance indicators should be carefully monitored and evaluated, both qualitatively and quantitatively. Monitoring and evaluation of DRR projects, on the other hand, focus on the impact, including both outcomes and outputs, of the projects on the beneficiary communities as a whole. However, one would notice that some, if not many, of the governance objectives, which are general in nature, coincide with DRR ones. For example, a governance indicator on awareness of citizens on their rights, such as the following, “Marginalized citizens’ understanding of their own rights and the challenges or vulnerabilities they face,” is done by CSOs, including ACCORD as a strong adherent, in training sessions on rights-based approaches, that recognizes the capacities of vulnerable communities to know, understand and assert their rights for proper and adequate services in reducing their risks against disasters. There are various and appropriate methods that can be used for monitoring DRR and governance: qualitative interviews and focus group discussions, quantitative surveys, community audits, etc. It is important to remind ourselves that what gets measured gets managed. Understanding the results of our interventions, it is necessary to do monitoring and evaluation of DRR and governance. This will contribute to a possible eventual institutionalization of good DRR and good governance practices. Of course, there are other fundamental factors in society that affect governance and risks to disasters of communities, such as technological backwardness, great economic disparity, narrow political interests, and cultural subservience. Nonetheless, stories like that of Barangay Chairman Arsenio will not remain as isolated cases of good individuals doing the right things because there will be, at least, a possible influence of the institutionalized DRR and good governance practices to public authorities, civil society, marginalized and other stakeholders.