CEBU CITY – The Climate Change Commission (CCC) is now raising the capacity of local government units (LGUs) in the country to implement climate change action plans next year that will be financed through the P1 billion People’s Survival Fund (PSF). CCC Secretary Lucille Sering said that the Department of Budget and Management, Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) and her office recently signed a joint memorandum circular to track climate change expenditure in the local budget. The signing boosted CCC’s effort to disseminate information about climate change programs and activities to vulnerable LGUs.  “By next year, we are looking that 50% of vulnerable towns and cities will comply with the policy directive,” Sering told reporters at the sidelines of climate change workshop for Visayas journalists held this city on October 13.

The PSF is now ready for release, but the CCC makes sure that local officials are capable of utilizing the budget properly, Sering added. The P1 billion fund will focus on providing technical assistance to 4th to 6th class towns where local resources are not enough to hire experts to support less competent planning officers.  “Capacity building is twice or three times more valuable than putting up hard infrastructure in mitigating the impacts of climate change. It requires political will especially if it would affect their development agenda,” Sering added.

The assistance will concentrate on local government’s harmonization of climate change mitigation, disaster response and development plans. The official noted that many climate change-related projects proposed by LGUs are just regular infrastructure, without scientific considerations, such as two-storey buildings, basketball courts, and waiting sheds. The CCC secretary emphasized the need to adapt climate change strategies since it would be more costly if the government would act late. Approved in 2012, the PSF provides the long-term finance streams to enable the government to effectively address the impacts of climate change.
The fund can be used to implement local climate change action plans and make communities more resilient to climate-induced disasters, according to the CCC.

Adaptation activities are related to water resources management, land management, agriculture and fisheries, health, infrastructure development, natural ecosystems and capacity building. In 2009, the government enacted the Philippine Climate Change Act (CCA). After a year, the Philippine Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Act was passed, complementing the CCA. Planning took place in 2011 and it was followed with a climate tagging in 2012. This year is the issuance of supplemental guideline for CCA implementation.

“We really work hard on this because we have a timeline, but we can only have this implemented in 2015. We will start the compliance monitoring early next year. We might be surprised that a lot of them have complied already,” Sering added. (SARWELL Q. MENIANO)

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TACLOBAN CITY- Close to a year after this city was pummeled by supertyphoon Yolanda, its business outlook appears to have slowly recovered based on the number of business establishments now in operation.
From January up to October 7 of this year, 8,130 business establishments are now operating in Tacloban generating 16,295 employment and an income of P92 million for the city. Earlier, the City Treasure.r’s Office only projected an income from business collection of P100 million with its 2014 annual city budget revised to just P600 million from its original P800 million. Irene Chiu, chief of the Business License and Permits Division, said that the number indicates that Tacloban is now back to business after it was devastated by Yolanda on November 8, 2013. “I think we are now slowly recovering. This only proves that investors still have confidence for Tacloban. After all, we are still the center for trade and commerce in Eastern Visayas,” Chiu said. She added that with more business operating in Tacloban would mean employment generation and income for the city government which still relies on its share on internal revenue allotment from the national government. Tacloban receives about P400 million for its IRA.

Prior to Yolanda’s devastation, there were more than 12,900 business establishments operating in Tacloban, considered the ground zero of the world’ strongest typhoon. The city government generated P400 million from business taxes and licenses pre-Yolanda. Chiu said that out of the 8,130 business establishments now open in Tacloban, 953 were new businesses or those which are operating in the city after Yolanda’s devastation. Chiu said that they expect more establishments coming to Tacloban to do business considering that its condition is slowly improving. She said that they are now talking with one of the country’s biggest chain of supermarkets. “Hopefully, this will materializes,” Chiu said. Before the year is over, the Save More will be opening in Tacloban, the first venture of SM Group of companies in the region. Meantime, the Robinsons and Gaisano malls are now in full operations in Tacloban with another branch of Robinsons expected to be constructed at the Tacloban New Bus Terminal next year. (JOEY A. GABIETA)

TACLOBAN CITY- For the second time, President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino will be the guest speaker for this year’s annual commemorative program of the Leyte Gulf Landings. The President, who first attended the annual commemorative program in 2011, is expected to announce on what his administration has done so far on its rehabilitation effort in areas, including Leyte, devastated by supertyphoon Yolanda, said Governor Leopoldo Dominico Petilla.

Petilla said that considering of the current situation of the province, this year’s commemorative program will be simple. This year marks the 70th year the country was liberated by the American forces, led by legendary Douglas MacArthur, from the Japanese invaders. The President is expected to deliver his commemorative speech around 9 a.m. at the MacArthur National Shrine, itself suffered destruction during the wrath of Yolanda. This year’s commemorative program carry the theme “ Leyte 1994, Leyte 2014, Yesterday’s Heroes, Today’s Inspiration In The Road to Recovery.” The governor also said that with Mr. Aquino coming to attend this year’s Leyte Gulf Landings anniversary almost a year after the province was pummeled by Yolanda, he could make personally make an assessment on the status of ongoing projects relative to the government’s rehabilitation and recovery efforts.

“It is better for the President to see the status of the rehabilitation. This way, he could assess it personally,” Petilla said. Also expected to grace this year’s occasion are Ambassadors Philip Goldberg of the United States; Bill Tweddell of Australia; Asif Ahmad of the United Kingdom and Toshinao Urabe of Japan. Petilla announced that since Leyte suffered its worst crisis since World War II, the province is now poised to bounce back as he claimed that it is now on the road to recovery. During this year’s commemorative program, all members of Allied Forces will join the event as represented by their ambassadors and other embassy officials in the country, including Japan. “Japan as always, will join the occasion,” added Petilla.

A simple re-enactment will be held with participation of Australian Navy where two of its battleships are to be sent to the province for the occasion. The Australian Navy also constructed a marker at the McArthur Park National Shrine. The governor added that they also allotted a space for other members of the Allied Forces if they also wish to construct a marker at the McArthur National Shrine. Petilla also clarified that the repair done at McArthur National Shrine was funded by the Department of Tourism at a cost of P70,000. (ROEL T. AMAZONA with report of LIZBETH A. ABELLA)

TACLOBAN CITY- Hundred twenty children orphaned during the onslaught of supertyphoon Yolanda are now being supported by the SOS Children’s Village under its kinship program. The children, who are all below 18 years of age and from the town of Tanauan and Tacloban City, are staying with their nearest kins while at the same time, with the SOS Children’s Village providing them assistance.

Oscar Garol, director of SOS Children’s Village, the orphaned children are supported by their organization of their education, basic needs, food and clothing allowance and fare for schooling. To date, Philhealth (Philippine Health Insurance Corp.) packages for the children are being process to help them during hospitalization. Garol added that the program is part of their emergency response program after Yolanda.

Children enrolled in the program are from San Jose district and northern part of Tacloban and from the villages of Lukay and Bislig in Tanauan. The purpose of the program where orphans were made to live with their relatives is for them to recover from the trauma on losing their parents and spare them for the meantime the fear of new environment, added Garol.

Orphans enrolled in the program were referrals from barangay officials although SOS enrollment is still open as there are still many orphans left unattended who may qualify for the program, he added. (LIZBETH ANN A. ABELLA)

SAN ISIDRO,Northern,Samar- Members of a team from the Mines and Geosciences Bureau(MGB) recently conducted their geohazard mapping in all the villages of this town. The MGB team, headed by geologists Leah Mae Marie Gegare and Vincent Gascal, made recommendations to the local government and barangay officials for them to observe to avoid if not minimize impacts due to a natural calamity like flooding and landslide.

Eulalio Sola, head of the Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council, said that the MGB team presented the result of their assessment last September 30. Among the recommendations involved the following: construction of canals along village rod and evacuation centers to minimize flooding; vigilance during bad weather; establish a 40-meter “no dwelling zone” along coastal areas and 5-10 meter buffer zone from the creek’s bank—under P.D. 1067; slope stability improvements and as well proper maintenance of canals and discourage residents in settling along coastal and river mouth.

The MGB team also identified the town’s villages with low and high susceptibility on landslide and flooding incidents and at same time advises the public to initiate readiness and measures for the said identified geo-hazard. According to Poblacion village chairman Nelson Badillo Jr., the first-ever conduct of geohazard mapping on their town was a big help considering that occurrence of typhoons in the region has become frequent that results to destructions of properties and lose of lives. (PETER D. PAREDES)