Reaction Paper on the Philippine Risk Management Status Report of 2019

The Philippines is one of the most natural hazard-prone countries in the world.
The social and economic cost of natural disasters in the country is increasing due to
population growth, change in land-use patterns, migration, unplanned urbanization,
environmental degradation and global climate change. Reducing the risk of disasters
will be key to achieving the development goals in the Philippines. 

Natural disasters are catastrophic events with atmospheric, geological, and

hydrological origins, The latter is defined by UNSDR as “a natural process or
phenomenon that may cause loss of life, injury or other health impacts, property
damage, loss of livelihoods and services, social and economic disruption, or
environmental damage”.

Hazards become disasters only if vulnerable people and resources are exposed
to them. People who live in poverty and adverse socio-economic conditions are highly
vulnerable to disasters, especially those who live in river pathways and along the most
hazard-prone areas. This explains why some parts of the country are more prone to
specific hazards than others; some parts are exposed to more hazards than others. In
an analysis of natural disaster hotspots by the Hazard Management Unit of the World
Bank, the Philippines is among the countries where large percentages of population
reside in disaster prone areas. In the World Risk Report published by United Nations
University and the Institute of Environment and Human Security, looking into the four
components of risk (exposure, susceptibility, coping and adapt capacities), the
Philippines is the third most disaster risk country worldwide.

Aside from natural causes, the country also experiences human-induced

disasters. These are brought about by hazards that are of political and socio-economic
origins, among others. Many are forced to evacuate during times of conflict. Violence
continues to plague the country, with most of the fighting in the South. Intense
fighting between government forces and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF)
during the first half of year 2009 resulted in the displacement of hundreds of
thousands of civilians. The government and the MILF decided to lay down their arms
and work toward peace accord that had failed in 2009 in Malaysia. On the other hand,
the Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG), labelled a terrorist organization, continued to carry out
bombings and rebels were killed during clashes with the military in the latter part of
2009. These human-induced disasters caused by armed fighting’s in the South
continue to threaten the security of civilian communities which result into the
displacement of thousands of civilians. So long as there is no peace settlement
mechanism in Mindanao, internally displaced civilians will remain a given collateral
damage of every armed conflicts. Such disasters consequently cause public anxiety,
loss of lives, destruction of properties and sometimes x
 Over the past several years, the country has gained a lot of attention and
momentum in the area of disaster risk reduction. Numerous projects and activities
have been undertaken by various Philippine stakeholders and agencies in DRRM.
However, sustaining the positive results and scaling them up to effect rippling positive
changes in the lives of the people have been constant challenges. Threats remain.
Disasters and people’s risk to disasters are still present.

This is because the underlying causes of people’s vulnerability has yet to be

fully recognized and addressed. For years, DRR has focused more on efforts around
disaster preparedness and response and not so much in identifying the hazard-prone
areas and other factors which contribute to people’s exposure to disasters;
incorporating risk analysis to development plans; building people’s capacities towards
sustainable livelihood options; and the like. Although DRR has been gaining attention
among peoples and institutions, complete paradigm shift from “disasters as an
immediate product of hazards” to “disasters as a function of people’s vulnerability” has
not yet fully happened. Also, converging DRR and CCA remains to be a challenge, both
in understanding, mainstreaming into plans and policies, including institutional
mechanisms. Lastly, gaps in terms of increased knowledge, understanding and
capacities remain and cause a big challenge for the country in terms of DRRM.

The NDRRMP outlines the activities aimed at strengthening the capacity of the
national government and the local government units (LGUs) together with partner
stakeholders, to build the disaster resilience of communities and to institutionalize
arrangements and measures for reducing disaster risks, including projected climate
risks and enhancing disaster preparedness and response capabilities at all levels. It
highlights, among others, the importance of mainstream DRRM and CCA in the
development processes such as policy formulation, socioeconomic development
planning, budgeting and governance particularly in the area of environment,
agriculture, water, energy, health, education, poverty reduction, land-use and urban
planning and public infrastructure and housing among others. Mainstreaming also
puts to forth the need to develop common tools to analyze the various hazards and
vulnerability factors which put our communities and people into harm’s way.

In accordance with the NDRRMF, through the NDRRMP, the country will have
“Safer, adaptive and disaster resilient Filipino communities towards sustainable
development.” This will be achieved through the four distinct yet mutually reinforcing
priority areas, namely, (a) Disaster Prevention and Mitigation; (b) Disaster
Preparedness; (c) Disaster Response and (d) Disaster Recovery and Rehabilitation.
Each priority area has its own long-term goal, which when put together will lead to the
attainment of our country’s over goal/vision in DRRM.
 The Sendai Framework on Disaster Risk Reduction (2015-2030) is an ambitious
agreement that sets out the overall objective to substantially reduce disaster risk and
losses in lives, livelihoods and health and in the economic, physical, social, cultural
and environmental assets of persons, businesses, communities and countries.

It pursues the following goal: "Prevent new and reduce existing disaster risk
through the implementation of integrated and inclusive economic, structural, legal,
social, health, cultural, educational, environmental, technological, political and
institutional measures that prevent and reduce hazard exposure and vulnerability to
disaster, increase preparedness for response and recovery, and thus strengthen
resilience."

The Framework recognizes that the strong commitment and involvement of

political leadership in every country is crucial. State level governments share their
responsibility to reduce disaster risk with other stakeholders such as local
government, the private sector and other non-State actors. It puts in place 4 clear
priorities for action and 7 global targets for the substantial reduction of disaster risk.

PROJECT PROPOSAL

SITUATION:

Social Vulnerability
The urban poor are highly vulnerable to natural hazards, partly due to rapid
urban growth and lack of tenure which have forced many to inhabit hazard prone
areas such as flood plains, riverbanks, the coast etc.

Poverty in the Philippines is characterized by distinct spatial and individual

disparities. The poor, depending on their background, location and gender, are
affected by various observable economic hazards, and for many, education is
determining factors of future income and economic status. This is an important
consideration given the evidence indicating that even small-scale recurrent disasters,
such as flooding, can have negative impacts on education, especially for students from
low-income backgrounds, this observation indicates that a cycle has been forming
between disasters, hindered education, subsequent increased likelihood for poverty
and increased vulnerability.

In general, less developed countries like Philippines are more vulnerable to

natural hazards than are industrialized countries because of lack of understanding,
education, infrastructure, building codes, etc. Poverty also plays a role - since poverty
leads to poor building structure, increased population density, and lack of
communication and infrastructure.

Human intervention in natural processes can also increase vulnerability by

 Development and habitation of lands susceptible to hazards, for example,

building on floodplains subject to floods, sea cliffs subject to landslides,
coastlines subject to hurricanes and floods, or volcanic slopes subject to
volcanic eruptions.

 Increasing the severity or frequency of a natural disaster. For example:

overgrazing or deforestation leading to more severe erosion (floods, landslides),
mining groundwater leading to subsidence, construction of roads on unstable
slopes leading to landslides, or even contributing to global warming, leading to
more severe storms.

Proposed Solution:
To reduce the poverty in our country. Our plan is for the families to have access
to affordable, housing that are located in safe zones and in areas where social services
and public facilities are available. NHA or the National Housing Authority is the
government sector that grants housing for the less fortunate families. How can they
afford to pay the house granted to them? We need sustainable income sources for
households. We have the Department of Agriculture to support services for our
farmers, fisherman and laborers. Livelihood program and provisions to improve access
to credit and micro-insurance for our farmers and laborers, and provide training
activities. To ensure the social conditions of the less fortunate families, we have the
Department of Social Welfare and Development to provide adequate mental health and
psychosocial support to aid families and individuals to restore their normal
functioning.

Steps Involved:
Poverty alleviation is accompanied by a number of positive social impacts. These
include:

1.Improved access to food (that results in higher nutritional and health levels),

2.Improved access to education (due to higher income levels and ability to pay for fees
and supplies),

3.Improved employment opportunities.

4.Providing affordable, housing that are located in safe zone areas.

Sectors Involved:
Department of Agriculture the Department of Agriculture, is the executive
department of the Philippine government responsible for the promotion of agricultural
and fisheries development and growth.

National Housing Authority the National Housing Authority (NHA) is a government

agency responsible for public housing in the Philippines. Established on July 31,
1975, it is organized as a government-owned and controlled corporation under the
Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development as an attached agency.

Department of Social Welfare and Development the Philippines' Department of

Social Welfare and Development is the executive department of the Philippine
Government responsible for the protection of the social welfare of rights of Filipinos
and to promote the social development.