Philippines: Albay Governor gathers stakeholders to mainstream RP's climate change programme

Hundreds of country planners, technocrats, local government leaders, legislators, academicians, scientists, civil society movers and other development partners across the country gather here Wednesday for the start of a three-day summit towards mainstreaming the country's climate change adaptation (CCA) program.

Albay Gov. Joey Salceda, a topnotch economist and financial analysts who was recently named senior global champion of Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) by the United Nations (UN), will lead the province in playing host to the affair, dubbed LGU (Local Government Unit) Summit+3i.

This year's title of summit carries along the symbol "+3i" to signify that the CAA program started by Albay in 2007 is radiating in all three main islands of the country -- Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao -- Salceda, who had also assumed the title "green economist", explained.

The summit would provide a venue for critical actors to agree that CCA is a critical developmental concern that needs to be addressed to pursue and meet the country's commitment towards the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) by 2015, Salceda said.

LGUs, as front liners in meeting the commitment towards achieving MDGs must recognize that "development as usual" approach without considering climate variability and extremes, may pose as threat in meeting these development goals, he stressed.

"LGUs across the country must have a concerted effort to fast track achievement of MDGs, especially at the local level, to meet the 2015 target and share experiences in tracking their MDGs' progress," he added.

According to the MDG Achievement Fund (MDG-Fund), climate change is threatening to hamper the Philippines' attainment of the MDGs because of the country's limited capacity to undertake climate risk based planning and project implementation.

To address this handicap, it said mainstreaming climate risk reduction into key national and local development planning and regulatory processes and enhancing capacities of key national agencies, LGUs, academe and communities to undertake climate resilient development should be adopted.

Salceda also stressed that LGUs, should act as trailblazers of an aggressive and proactive climate and disaster resilient development plans and programs enshrined in the Local Government Code of 1991.

The LGU Summit +3i, he said, is designed to demonstrate and translate effective and efficient implementation of science-based analyses for disaster risk reduction measures and build consensus towards a way forward for CCA actions.

Salceda noted that while the Philippines continues to intensify its efforts to keep track with its MDG commitments for target year 2015, reducing poverty, increasing food security, improving health and ensuring environmental sustainability are progressing at a slow pace.

According to the recent 2010 MDG Progress Report, some challenges that affect the current situation include inadequate investment, ineffective government policies and lack of commitment.

The same report also identified impacts that, apart from the global financial crisis and price shocks, climate change (both climate variability and extreme) was identified as an imminent threat to achieving the country's poverty, education, health, gender equality and environmental sustainability commitments.

It added that attainment of MDGs will be more difficult for a developing country, especially for a climate hotspot country, like the Philippines.

Development, as usual, may not be enough to address these emerging threats. Non action may bring about short term (loss of lives, property and environmental integrity) and long term (reversal of development gains) impacts.

Thus, increasing the Philippines' capacity to implement adaptation measures is vital for meeting its 2015 MDG target.

In a recent interview with Ugnayan sa Bikol, a regular radio program over Radyo ng Bayan hosted by the regional office here of the Philippine Information Agency (PIA), Executive Director Manuel Rangasa of Albay's Center for Initiatives and Research on Climate Adaptation (CIRCA) said LGUs should be able to determine priority adaptation measures that would facilitate MDGs achievement by target year 2015 during the Nov. 4-6 summit.

Rangasa who is also the summit's program director said that in the interfacing, Albay will showcase its best working practices on DRR citing "pre-emptive evacuation" of communities-at-risk resulting to "zero casualty" in times of disasters and emergencies as adopted models in the country and recognized by the UN.

Salceda, in addressing the UN International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (UNISDR) in Bonn, Germany where he was named "Senior Champion" for CCA and DRR, said that given the rising climate risks, no development is possible without adaptation.

"It is development, however, that gives meaning to adaptation," he stressed.

"Adaptation is the duty of the state simply because it is the poor that bears the brunt of climate impacts and natural disasters - those who are most vulnerable are also the least capable of protection, those who have more in risks also have less in resources," Salceda noted.

Giving emphasis to CCA, he said "the duty cannot be outsourced, it cannot be offshored, it cannot be delegated. But it must do so by capacitating local communities and reinforcing local governance - by making cities and provinces resilient."

Albay, a calamity prone province that faces the Pacific Ocean where most typhoons of the year originate, joined the conference dubbed as Asia First World Congress on Cities and Adaptation to Climate Change "Resilient Cities 2010", as a global model.

The UN ISDR aims to build disaster resilient communities by promoting increased awareness of the importance of disaster reduction as a component of sustainable development.

Salceda pioneered the "zero casualty" policy through preemptive evacuation during disasters, and hosted the National Conference on Climate Change Adaptation in two successive settings-- first at the Albay Astrodome here in 2007 and the second at the Diamond Hotel in Manila in 2009.

Both were well acclaimed and attended by international crisis managers, scientists, businessmen and students.

Salceda was recognized as an outstanding campaigner and implementer of CCA and DRR in a global gathering of that size since it puts the Philippines in the forefront of these noble objectives.

"I joined the ISDR campaign for resilient cities as global role model for Asia for two reasons: first, Albay wants to learn from the best practices in the rest of the world; second, we want to push ourselves higher on standard to drive ourselves harder on this effort and to push the envelope on development through DRR and CCA," Salceda said.

He said adaptation is an investment, not a cost. "It reduces risks, thus increases business returns. Albay has seen a surge in investments even after typhoons Reming and Milenyo in 2006, Mayon eruptions in 2009 and a spate of recent disasters."

CCA and DRR allow development to proceed amid disasters and in the case of Albay, the governor said, it do not disrupt people's lives since the provincial government takes charge of it.

These efforts of the province concerning CCA have also been adopted by the Philippine government due to a series of resolutions "adopting the Albay Declaration of Climate Change Adaptation as a framework for the mainstreaming of global warming concerns into the national and local planning" passed by both the Senate and House of Representatives.

The country's Climate Change Commission (CCC) formed following these resolutions has stressed that implementation of direct adaptation measures to address climate variability and extreme is highly local.

This means that the role of local governments is indispensable in shaping and implementing successful adaptation measures that would ensure continuity of development and provide safety nets for highly vulnerable groups, it added.