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TASK FORCE RUBY: Activating CODE-NGO’s Regional DRRM Coordinating Hubs

On Dec 5, 2014, during the CODE-NGO Social Development Celebration in Davao City, CODE-NGO held a meeting with partners to activate the DRR Coordination Hub in anticipation of the impacts of Typhoon “Ruby”. The meeting was attended by representatives of CODE-NGO member networks who have operations in the identified path of Typhoon Ruby: Agri-Aqua Development Coalition, PAKISAMA and PhilDHRRA for Northern Mindanao, Eastern Visayas Network of NGOs and Pos (EVNET) for Region 8, Western Visayas Network of Social Development NGOs (WEVNET) for Region 6, Central Visayas Network of NGOs (CenVISNET) for Region 7, Partnership of Philippine Support Service Agencies (PhilSSA) for MIMAROPA,  and Coalition for Bicol Development (CBD) for Region 5. The identified areas are also those that were devastated by the Super Typhoon Yolanda more than a year ago and are currently being assisted by the CODE-NGO member networks in the rehabilitation and recovery phase.

The member-networks in attendance agreed to become part of the coordination hub dubbed as “Task Force Ruby” which will be CODE-NGO’s platform for sharing of information and latest updates regarding Typhoon Ruby and do an initial damage assessment after the storm has passed. A Facebook group was established which serves as the repository of information and the members have been updating and exchanging information and data to monitor the status of typhoon impacts on the ground. A Community Damage and Needs Assessment (CDANA) template has also been distributed. Once filled-up by partners, these would be processed by the CODE-NGO National Secretariat thru the ACED2 Project and the results will be used as basis for immediate intervention. 

TASK FORCE TYPHOON RUBY DIRECTORY

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Community and Damage Needs Assessment Matrix of CODE-NGO Affected  Member Networks

By CODE-NGO TASK FORCE RUBY

Download here: https://code-ngo.org/home/reports-a-resource-materials/item/code-ngo-task-force-typhoon-ruby-update.html

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Advancing CSO Engagement in DRRM-CCA (ACED) Project

Natural disasters increasingly present socio-economic and environmental risks to the Philippines. The World Disaster Report 2012 ranked the country as the third most risky place in the globe in terms of exposure to natural calamities. In 2013 alone, a 7.2 magnitude earthquake hit Bohol in October, and the strongest tropical cycle to ever hit the planet, typhoon Yolanda/Haiyan, brought havoc to the Visayas in November. Members of the six (6) national networks and three (3) of the 6 regional networks, which are members of CODE-NGO – WEVNET in Region 6, CENVISNET in Region 7 and EVNET in Region 8 found their partner communities in the middle of the enormous devastation at the aftermath of the typhoon, just as their own organizations, staff and families were reeling from the impact of the calamity.

In prior years, natural calamities hitting the country, especially typhoons, have become more extreme and frequent, and brought damages that have not been seen before – 2006 Reming in Bicol, 2008 Frank in Iloilo, 2009 Ondoy and Pepeng in Metro Manila and in central and northern Luzon, 2011 Sendong in northern and eastern Mindanao and 2012 Pablo in eastern and southern Mindanao.

Since the impacts of these events adversely undermine any development intervention being implemented in the areas affected by the calamities, it has become a necessity for us development organizations to mainstream disaster risk reduction and management (DRRM) and climate change adaptation (CCA) in our interventions. Thus, as it defined its Strategic Plan for 2013-2017, CODE-NGO identified DRR-CCA as key emerging concerns, for which it needs to build its knowledge and understanding. A key result area identified in the CODE-NGO strategic plan is to “build the capacities of its member networks in governance, networking and local and sectoral advocacy effectiveness.” In particular, KRA 2.4 of the plan calls for CODE-NGO to pursue capacity building for its member networks in integrating key emerging concerns, i.e. DRR-CCA, in their programs and projects.

In the meantime, many CODE-NGO members at the regional, provincial and municipal levels are engaging local government units (LGUs) in the bottom-up budgeting (BUB) or grassroots participatory budgeting (GPB) and local development planning processes. These engagements are seen as a platform by which our organizations can influence LGUs to mainstream DRR-CCA in their local plans and budgets.

CODE-NGO’s 3-Year DRRM-CCA Capacity Building Plans

To respond to the above developments, CODE-NGO has drafted its plan to build the capacities of its member networks in DRRM-CCA pursuant to its Strategic Plan for 2013-2017 (see Annex A). In the next 3.5 years, CODE-NGO aims for the following:

1. A cadre of DRRM champions within the CODE-NGO network is formed, who are capable of conducting or facilitating community-based disaster risk assessment, disaster contingency planning and post-disaster rapid needs assessment, and training others to do the same.

2. Local CSO Networks are formed or strengthened (CODE-NGO MNs or MNs ++ other CSOs) as DRRM hubs in at least 8 strategic regions/areas, which have capacities to:

• Coordinate responses/actions of their members and partner CSOs in their areas in times of disasters
• Engage LGUs in strengthening local DRRMCs and crafting DRRM-sensitive local plans and budgets through the bottom-up budgeting (BUB)/grassroots participatory budgeting (GPB) and comprehensive development planning (CDP)/executive-legislative agenda (ELA)/annual investments planning (AIP) processes.

3. CODE-NGO has established communication and coordination protocols within the network to coordinate its members’ response from local to national level in times of disaster and to sustain learning exchange on DRR-CCA among practitioners.

4. CODE-NGO and its member networks have assisted selected municipalities in Yolanda-affected provinces – such as Leyte, Eastern Samar, Western Samar, Iloilo, Capiz, Cebu and Palawan – in crafting, implementing, monitoring and/or evaluating rehabilitation plans and programs post-Yolanda.

ACED Project Year 1

Christian Aid’s support for CODE-NGO’s ACED Project Year 1 from the period March 2013 to February 28, 2014 has resulted to the following:

1. Capacity building framework and training modules on DRRM-CCA for CSOs were developed on understanding DRRM-CCA concepts and related laws, integrating DRRM-CCA in CSO organizational policies and programs, conducting community-based hazard, vulnerability and capacity assessments and doing emergency response following humanitarian principles. The framework and modules developed for the training program were based on a DRRM training needs analysis of 12 CODE-NGO member networks, as well as DRRM technologies, tools and practices of some CODE-NGO member networks.
2. DRRM-CCA pool of trainers/experts from within the CODE-NGO network was formed.
3. 24 DRRM-CCA ‘champions’ from CODE-NGO member networks and base organizations were trained, strengthening the coalition’s capacity to move forward its DRRM-CCA initiatives.
4. Community-based risk assessments conducted in the following areas:

• Tabon-tabon, Baco, Oriental Mindoro c/o Kaunsayan Foundation for Community Development (KAFCODE) / PHILSSA
• Salvador, Cortez, Bohol, c/o Bohol Alliance of NGOs (BANGON), CENVISNET 
• Masayo, Tobias Fornier and Casay, Anini-y, Antique c/o Iloilo CODE and PROCESS Antique / WEVNET
• Caima, Bahao and Salvacion in Libmanan, Camarines Sur, c/o Caritas Diocese of Libmanan / CBD
• Consolacion, Cagayan de Oro, Misamis Oriental c/o Foundation for Growth and Organizational Upliftment of People (GROUP) / MINCODE
• Batunan, Sariano, Manamba, Tagonon, Carpenito in Tagbina, Surigao del Sur, c/o Kasilak Development Foundation / MINCODE
• San Pedro, Talibon, Bohol by PHILDHRRA Visayas / PHILDHRRA.

ACED Project Year 2

Given the above results of ACED Year 1 and ensuing plans and recommendations to sustain such results, CODE-NGO aims to build up on the lessons from ACED by prioritizing the following:

Objectives

1. Sharpen the skills in post-disaster rapid needs assessment and mainstreaming DRRM in BUB/GPB and CDP of a group of DRRM-CCA CSO champions in strategic areas nationwide
2. Strengthen the capacities of local and national CSO networks for response coordination, advocacy and learning exchange on DRRM-CCA.
3. Support the participation and engagement of CSOs in planning, implementing and monitoring of rebuilding and reconstruction programs and projects in Yolanda-affected areas.