CHAPTER 12

Building Safe and Secure Communities

Consistent with the thrust of the Philippine Development Plan 2017-2022, the Plan underscores the
importance of building safe and secure communities in achieving inclusive growth, a high trust and resilient
society and a globally competitive knowledge economy. This chapter focuses on expanding access to
affordable, adequate, safe and secure shelter in well-planned communities. It shall strengthen housing as a
platform to reduce poverty and improve social outcomes.

Through the past three years, the provision of housing assistance to informal settlers especially those that
are highly vulnerable to flooding and other natural calamities remains the priority of the housing agencies.
The enhancement of capacities of the local government units in land use planning was given attention by
the local chief executives. In terms of reforms and policies, the creation of the Department of Human
Settlements and Urban Development (DHSUD) is envisioned to address the lack of access to shelter
opportunities especially by the underserved and underprivileged citizens in the region. The National
Resettlement Policy Framework (NRPF) for informal settler families was also adopted. The framework
highlights the provision that resettlement site locations must be identified and implemented according to
land use and development plans. The LGUs are seen to become full partners along this endeavour.

ASSESSMENT AND CHALLENGES

Access to Affordable, Adequate, Safe and Secure Shelter in Well-Planned
Communities

As of the Census year 2015, the Philippine Statistics Authority recorded an additional 75,995 occupied
housing units in the region over the past five years or a total of 789,269 occupied housing units inhabited
by 804,524 households. The ratio of household population per housing unit decreased at 4.36:1 compared
to 5:1 ratio in 2010. The ratio is a bit lower than the country’s 4.48 per household. Ninety three percent of
the total households lived in a single house-type structure, five percent in a duplex-type structure while the
remaining two percent either lived in multi-unit residential, commercial and other types of housing units.

Informal settlements and those with inadequate housing decreased . As of December 31,
2018, there is an estimated 50,442 informal settler families (ISFs) in the region. Informal settlements or
inadequate housing decreased by 9.79 percent or 2,217 socialized housing units delivered. The percentage
decrease was below the 20 percent target for the first two years of the CVRDP 2017-2022 implementation
but is 20 percent more than the target in terms of number of units delivered. For the formal sector, 1,723
low-cost housing units were delivered or 4.7 percent more than the target. The proportion of improvement
may not be consistent with the number of units delivered due to the increased total number of housing
needs brought about by the additional data from LGUs that have assessed their housing backlogs in 2018.

Table 12.___. Core performance indicators to build safe and secure communities,
Region 02, CY 2017 & 2018(CVRDP 2017-2022 Results Matrix)
BASELINE Target Accomplishment
INDICATORS
(2016) 2017 2018 2017 2018
Proportion of informal settlements or 10 10 10 8.39 1.4
inadequate housing decreased (%)
Proportion of socialized housing targets to
8 10 10 8.39 1.4
housing needs improved (%)
Proportion of low-cost housing targets met to
- 10 10 9.3 1.0
housing needs improved (%)
Number of socialized housing units delivered
658 839 906 944 1,273
(cumulative)
Number of low-cost housing units delivered
718 647 999 826 897
(cumulative)
Number of LGUs with DRR-CCA- Enhanced
12 14 14 46 14
Comprehensive Land Use Plan (CLUPs)
Source: PSA 02, DHSUD

Housing backlog completely assessed. The assessment on the housing backlog of the region’s 93
cities/ municipalities showed a housing backlog of 93,791 units as of November 2018. The bulk of which
are for displaced households (Table 12.__). The top three LGUs with the most number of housing backlog
is Ilagan City (7,206); Roxas, Isabela (7,201); Bayombong, Nueva Vizcaya (7,051); and Cabagan, Isabela
(3,481). To address the problem, the displaced households and homeless are given first priority.

Table 12.__ Summary of Housing Backlog Per Province, Region 02, as of November 2018
Housing Backlog
No. of Total Housing
Province Doubled-up Displaced
Cities/Municipalities Homeless Backlog
household household
6/6 Quirino 639 1,226 0 1,865
15/15 Nueva Vizcaya 5,775 12,203 342 18,320
37/37 Isabela 14,216 30,745 1,858 46,819
29/29 Cagayan 7,543 18, 870 87 26,500
6/6 Batanes 161 126 0 287
93/93 TOTAL 28,334 63,170 2,287 93,791
Source : DHSUD

Access to decent, affordable, safe and secure shelter has been difficult for the housing sector primarily due
to rapid urbanization, natural disasters and scarcity of suitable and affordable land. The level of housing
production is low because land development process has been tedious, time-consuming and costly which
makes the business of socialized housing unattractive to developers.
Formulation/completion of the DRR-CCA – enhanced Comprehensive Land Use Plans
(CLUPs) reinforced. The local government units have made significant moves in mainstreaming
climate change action in their Comprehensive land Use Plans. For the past two years, 60 LGUs were
assisted on the enhancement of their CLUPs. Completion of DRR-CCA-enhanced CLUPs and the strict
implementation of the same will address the lack of capacity of LGUs to properly guide the direction of
urban expansion. This will include the selection of sites appropriate for housing development and
resettlement areas, a secure and resilient community that will withstand climate change and natural
disasters. Also, the creation of Local Housing Boards in all cities and municipalities should be given equal
attention by the local chief executives to ensure the preparation of their Local Shelter Plans, completion of
the DRR-CCA-enhanced CLUPs and oversee or coordinate government activities related to housing
programs at the local level.

ACTION PLAN
As we envision the region to open its economy to our East asia neighboring countries by
2040, the region will keep pace with rapid urbanization as informal settlers are expected to
grow and add up to our already existing ISFs if not planned accordingly. For the remaining
years of the CVRDP 2017-2022, this chapter will aim to strengthen socioeconomic resiliency
by building safe and secure communities through access to affordable, adequate, safe and
secure shelter.

Targets

To expand access to affordable, safe and secure shelter in well-planned communities, the
proportion of informal settlements or inadequate housing should be decreased at the same
time improve the proportion of socialized housing vis a vis the housing needs of the region.

Table 12.____ Plan Targets to Build Safe and Secure Communities, Region 02, 2020-2022
Baseline Annual Plan Targets END-oF-PLAN
Indicators Target
Year Value 2020 2021 2022 2022
Proportion of informal settlements or 2016 10 6.56 5.90 5.31 5.31
inadequate housing decreased
Proportion of socialized housing targets 2016 8 11.71 12.88 14.17 14.17
to housing needs improved
Proportion of low-cost housing targets 2016 13.31 14.64 16.10 16.10
met to housing needs improved
Number of socialized housing units 2016 658 562 398 438 3,615
delivered (cumulative)
Number of low-cost housing units 2016 718 TBD TBD TBD TBD
delivered (cumulative)
Source: DHSUD
Strategic Framework

To attain the targets set for the remaining plan period, the CVRDP 2017-2022 will adopt the sector outcome
set in the Philippine Development Plan 2017-2022 Midterm Update to continuously build safe and secure
communities in the region. The subsector outcomes will be refocused on expanding access to housing
opportunities by accelerating housing production; enhancing housing affordability for the low- income
market; and ensuring livability and sustainability of human settlements.

Strategies

Together with the adoption of the PDP 2017-2022 Midterm Update strategic framework for building safe
and secure communities, the CVRDP will also take the strategies spelled out in the PDP to achieve the
targets for building safe and secure communities.

Sub-sector outcome 1: Expand access to housing opportunities by accelerating

housing production
Adopt viable land acquisition approaches. Land banking especially for socialized housing will be scaled
up to address the availability of land in urban areas in support of the in-city approach to resettlement as a
government priority. Likewise, usufruct or long-term use of land will be expanded to enhance affordability of
socialized and low-cost housing programs as a result of lower land development cost.

Implement a unified, seamless housing development transactions processing for home buyers and
developers. A housing One-Stop Processing centers will be established in the region to fast track
processing of housing-related permits, clearances and licenses issued by the NGAs and LGUs. The aim is
to further streamline the 78 government-related transactions averaging about 48 months to be compliant
with RA 11032 Ease of Doing Business and Efficient Government Service Delivery Act of 2018.

Introduce High-density Housing Program in urban centers. To address the increasing demand for
housing brought about by increasing trend in urban population in the four cities of the region and other fast-
rising urban municipalities, there is a need to expand to high density housing solutions such as low-rise
building (3-5 storeys), medium-rise (6-10 storeys) and high-rise (above 10 storeys) to maximize housing
production per unit of land in the urban areas.

Review effectiveness of the implementation of the balanced housing development. To ensure that
the private developers fully comply with the balanced housing requirement under R.A. 10884 Balanced
Housing Program Amendments Act and to ensure proper compliance reporting thereof, a comprehensive
review of the effectiveness of the implementation of the balanced housing development will be undertaken
to institute measures to improve its implementation. Measures to ensure that the low-income families
benefit from the balanced housing development will be operationalized. Per RA 10884, private developers
are required to provide socialized housing equivalent to at least fifteen percent of the total subdivision area
or subdivision project cost.

Phased implementation of housing development. In view of new budget policy/calendar with annual
cash based scheme, a phased implementation (e.g., land acquisition, land development, housing
construction/estate management) with a multi-year cash allocation (MYCA) of housing projects to
synchronize with the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) budget calendar is necessary. This
process reform is expected to help ensure fiscal discipline and improve budget utilization rates among key
shelter agencies.

Sub-sector outcome 2: Enhance housing affordability for low income market

Implement innovative housing finance modalities. With the implementation of the RA 10963 or The
Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN) Act which rationalizes the tax incentives system for
socialized housing, among others, direct subsidies through housing vouchers and public rental housing
schemes will be developed. A feasibility study and a pilot implementation of said modalities will be pursued
by the DHSUD.
Strengthen primary and further develop secondary mortgage markets. The current efforts of Pag- Ibig
under the End-User Financing Program have shown to be effective with the lowering of interest rates from
6 percent to 4 percent which improve access of the low-income Pag-Ibig members to socialized housing
loan takeouts. Sustaining the success of the Modified Pag-IBIG (MP2) program implementation is
expected to expand the fiscal space of Pag-IBIG to enable it to finance more socialized housing loan take-
outs and other loan services. On the other hand, the secondary mortgage programs of NHMFC need to be
further developed in terms of expanding access and coverage. For instance, the newly introduced Reverse
Mortgage Program - MAginhawang BUhay dahil sa baHAY (MABUHAY) Program of NHMFC need to be
widely promoted. MaBuHay Program allows senior citizens/retirees to convert a portion of their home
equity into cash in order to address their immediate financial needs.

Sub-sector outcome 3: Ensure livability and sustainability of human settlements

Fully mainstream program convergence budgeting in housing and resettlement. Given challenges in
the provision of auxiliary services in resettlement areas which is beyond the primary mandate of key shelter
agencies and lodged with the LGUs, it has become imperative to fully mainstream program convergence
budgeting based on the mandates and capacities of implementing agencies and LGUs. Auxiliary services
such as school buildings, day care center, health center, access road and livelihood support services are
crucial services that should be present in resettlement areas. However, the lack of coordination and clear
policy guidance among concerned agencies hamper the prompt and sustained delivery of these services,
thus, the need for a comprehensive convergence budgeting in human settlements development. The newly
created DHSUD is well-positioned to orchestrate the convergence budgeting approach which is budgeting
for service delivery based on agency mandate and capacity.

Stricter enforcement of compliance with building and design standards. HLURB Resolution 915 (s.
2014) which approved the Supplemental Guidelines for Mainstreaming Climate Change Adaptation and
Disaster Risk Reduction in the Comprehensive Land Use Plan aimed to increase preparedness and
adaptation measures by LGUs and local communities. It is imperative for LGUs to formulate climate and
disaster risk sensitive CLUPs zoning ordinances that regulate land use so that exposure and vulnerability of
population, infrastructure, economic activities and the environment to natural hazards and climate change
can be minimized or prevented. In light of this, RLAs and LGUs shall enforce stricter compliance to building
and design standards (i.e., safety, location, structural design and integrity) by the developers, contractors
and private homebuilders. Due diligence is essential on the part of RLAs and LGUs in terms of inspection
of materials, construction progress monitoring and certification of project completion which also ensures
satisfactory compliance to building and design standards.

Institutionalize community-led/driven housing. The DHSUD shall promote and expand peoples’
planning, community initiative approach and other community-led/participatory approaches in human
settlements. Based on the National Shelter Program Impact Assessment, program implementers such as
NHA and SHFC are pre-occupied with estate management activities even after project completion. To
relieve NHA and SHFC of this task, and instead focus on housing production, community associations such
as Homeowners Associations (HOAs), housing cooperatives and neighborhood associations need to be
capacitated to undertake estate management on a truly participatory and sustained manner.

Operationalize the National Resettlement Policy Framework (NRPF). The DHSUD shall fully implement
the NRPF and ensure its integration with local plans and programs on resettlement. In the next three years,
DHSUD shall undertake information dissemination, consultations and subsequent issuances of policy
resolutions towards the implementation of the framework in line with its localization efforts on the New
Urban Agenda (NUA). The NRPF shall be promulgated with emphasis on livelihood restoration guided by a
socioeconomic restoration framework.

Mainstream local shelter planning in the CLUPs of cities and municipalities. In line with the mandate
of LGUs as provided for in RA 7160 on Local Government Code of 1991 and RA 7279 or the Urban
Development and Housing Act (UDHA) of 1992 to take primary responsibility for shelter planning and
addressing the housing needs of their constituents, the formulation of a Local Shelter Plan (LSP) to enable
them to effectively implement their mandate on shelter provision is deemed necessary. To institutionalize
local shelter planning in cities and municipalities, the DHSUD shall develop the guidelines and strategies
for the formulation of the LSP. To incentivize the LSP formulation, DHSUD shall include the approved LSP
of LGUs among the criteria for the issuance of the BALAI seal of compliance.

Legislative Agenda

To complement the strategies identified, legislative action will be sought in support of the goal of building
safe and secure shelter in well-planned communities.

Legislative Agenda Rationale

Passage of the National Land Use
Act (NaLUA)
Establish a national land use framework that will define the indicative
priorities for land utilization and allocation across residential,
infrastructure, agricultural and protective uses and integrate efforts,
monitor developments related to land use, and evolve policies,
regulations and directions of land use planning processes.

Passage of the Social Housing Finance
Corporation (SHFC)
Strengthen the role of the previously created SHFC (by virtue of
Executive Order No. 272, s. 2007) by redefining the powers and
functions of the President, Board of Directors and of the Corporation,
providing incentives, and enabling the SHFC to enter into loans and/
or issue bonds and other debentures to raise funds for housing
construction and pursue development financing approaches such as
implementation of shelter-related subsidy.
Amendments to the NHMFC Charter Strengthen its mandate to include the development of a secondary
mortgage market for housing-related financial instruments and
issuance of housing- related asset-backed securities.

National Housing Development Production Seeks to provide low-cost, accessible and affordable housing as part
and Financing Act (NHDPFA) of the efforts to reduce homelessness in the country by significantly
accelerating housing production and ensure sufficient and reliable
government funding and financing for housing.
Source:Chapter12 of PDP 2017-2022 Midterm Update