Working locally to affect the global: An overview of the DRRM and CCA sessions during the 2014 Social Development Celebration

Laurencia Emilsson Oñate

During the first week of December, the Caucus of Development NGO Networks (CODE-NGO) and the Mindanao Coalition of Development NGO Networks (MINCODE), hosted the annual Kasali Ka, Sumali Ka! Social Development Celebration (SDC) 2014 under the banner theme “From South to North and from Bottom Up: CSOs Shaping Peace and Resilience”. The celebration was held in Davao City and served as the 18th General Assembly of the CODE-NGO’s 12 member networks which represent more than 2,000 development NGOs, people’s organizations, and cooperatives all over the Philippines. The various presentations, learning sessions, forums and plenary sessions had their focus on peace and resilience and particularly how these concepts relate to the ongoing endeavours to promote the Bangsamoro Basic Law or (BBL), and the mainstreaming efforts of Disaster Risk Reduction Management (DDRM) and Climate Change Adaptation (CCA) post Typhoon Yolanda of 2013. This article will give an overview of what was discussed in relation to the latter of these core topics, namely the discussions related to resilience, DRRM and CCA efforts.

CODE-NGO’s potential to bridge the gap

One of the key presenters revolving the issues of resilience to climate change was Dr. Gemma T. Narisma, PhD, from the Manila Observatory. Dr. Narisma related CSO (civil society organization) engagement to CCA and DRRM strategies, highlighting the importance of preparing for future disasters by stating that “A disaster occurs when a hazard impacts on vulnerable people. We cannot stop a storm, but we can influence vulnerability”. In order to combat vulnerability and gain resilience, the most vulnerable must be prioritized in CCA and DRRM planning and implementation. Reiterating Dr. Narisma, it is as if the poor are our first line of defense, when we talk about people deaths related to calamities, we are talking about the deaths of poor people. Furthermore, the presentation emphasized that because of CSOs’ close work with local communities and the impoverished; organizations and member networks such as those part of CODE-NGO are in a great position to become the bridge between the general population, the academe and policy makers, leading to a more direct and inclusive dialogue.

Reinforcing the necessity of ownership, partnership and shared responsibilities for emergency preparedness

Following Dr. Narisma’s presentation, the Partnership of Philippine Support Service Agencies, Inc. (PHILSSA) led the learning session, “Angat Calamianes: A multi-stakeholder Partnership Model for Yolanda Rehabilitation and Resilience”. Vice Mayor Emil Neri of Linapacan, Palawan together with Mr. Benedict Balderrama from PHILLSA, shared their post Yolanda rehabilitation experiences from their work in Palawan barangays (villages). The importance of considering families and communities affected by calamities as partners in reconstruction projects was highlighted, encouraging further consideration of the most vulnerable groups, such as indigenous peoples, elderly, people with disorders and single-headed households. An example of how the Palawan reconstruction efforts from PHILSSA strived for ownership was by letting beneficiary families themselves choose the type of materials to be procured for repairing or rebuilding their homes, thus empowering the local communities.

Mr. Jaime Ayala from Solar Energy Foundation, Inc. (SEFI) who is also involved with the rehabilitation in Palawan affirmed the arguments from PAGE and PHILLSA, and deliberated that a good and functional partnership and ownership is crucial for the empowerment of affected communities. SEFI plans to donate solar-driven reading lamps to schools in areas where electricity is scarce, with the idea that schools will be custodians of these lamps, and that the schoolchildren will be able to rent them from the school on a weekly basis for a small fee agreed upon by the parents and the school. These fees would then be used for the future maintenance of the lights, ensuring their durability while at the same time distributing the responsibility of the lights to various stakeholders. Mr. Ayala expressed SEFI’s endeavours to address maternal mortality, communication issues, lack of light and lack of medical equipment during times of distress by providing off-grid Barangay Help Stations with Solar Suitcases for Emergency Response (SSER). The necessity to work closely with community leaders and tribal councils was stressed, along with the promise to conduct training sessions on how to properly operate the SSERs. Mr. Ayala echoed Dr. Narisma’s encouragement of the work of CODE-NGO, saying that the road to achieving these goals is on a long-term basis, but that, “If there are good partners, it makes the process faster”.

Ways forward: DRRM Coordination Hubs put into action due to Typhoon Ruby

As part of the Advancing CSO Engagement in DRRM-CCA (ACED) project, a forum was held focusing on how to put the lessons from Typhoon Yolanda into practice, mainly by creating Regional DRRM Coordination Hubs and Local Response Hubs. The post-Yolanda forum discussed The Partnership Principles for coordination and what the Hubs will look like. The hubs are meant to be a mechanism enabling emergency preparedness by supporting inter-network learning exchanges and advocacy for responsive DRR-CCA during ‘peace’ times, and be a platform for emergency response and facilitate communications and resource mobilization in times of disaster. The execution of the ACED forum was certainly well-timed, as it coincided with the first alerts of Typhoon Ruby. Thus, the coordination hubs and the lessons learned from the SDC-week were put into practice immediately.

“We connect our local to the global. We want change not just for ourselves but for the people we serve”, Chairperson Patricia M. Sarenas declared, indicating the driving-force behind the strong commitments of the member networks. The 2014 Social Development Celebration ended on a strong note by joining together in a commitment ceremony to today’s and tomorrow’s peace and resilience efforts; showcasing the strength in numbers created by a functional network and reinforcing the commitment of the CODE-NGO family as a united front.

Laurencia Emilsson Oñate is Master student from the University of Gothenburg, Sweden, doing her internship at CODE-NGO with the Advancing CSO Engagement in DRRM-CCA (ACED Project).