Climate change solutions lie with poor communities

By Robert L. Domoguen, Philippine Country Programme Management Team Member

Experts discussing their topics on agriculture and climate change at the 3rd IFAD-Philippines Knowledge and Learning Market (KLM) sessions this morning (21 October 2009) said that the poor are not to be blamed for this weather anomaly’s occurrence and destruction on the nation.

The poor are the least responsible, if we are searching for someone to blame for climate change. Still, they are the most vulnerable and suffer all types of hardships that are likely to emerge as a result, according to Ms. Marie Nunez of OXFAM.

Typhoons Ondoy and Pepeng brought the reality of the impact of climate change into our doors. Filipinos have yet to take into account the long-term consequences of the destruction wrought by both typhoons. Another super typhoon, code named Ramil is threatening North Luzon. It will force Filipinos, most of whom are unaware of scientific adaptation strategies for coping with climate change, to search for much needed solutions.

Climate change solutions lie with poor communities

In the Philippines, the search for climate change solutions must begin with participatory planning at all levels. Farmers groups, local government units (LGUs), government agencies and non-government organizations (NGOs) will need to sit together to understand and prepare actions to deal with climate change. The planning and execution of plans will also need to go beyond political boundaries. This is because the environment and consequences of climate change go beyond political boundaries, according to Mr. Eduardo Queblatin of UNDP.

Most Filipinos, especially the farmers, remain unaware of scientific adaptation strategies for coping with climate change. “However, we have braved the adversity associated with climate variability. We are responding to weather changes informally, the best way we can,” said Mr. Efren Arroyo, enterprise development coordinator of PAKISAMA. The latter is a nationwide farmers organization engaged in the promotion of organic agriculture. Arroyo said adaptations to climate change in the Philippines will need to consider farmers, fishermen and indigenous experiences in dealing with weather-related natural calamities. Strategies to cope with climate change will need to build on systems adapted to local philosophy, culture, and traditions.

The government has ratified numerous international climate change commitments including the Philippine Agenda 21. Popular participation remains a challenge to be addressed, Arroyo explained. His brief talk sought wide consultations on the government’s policy framework and for vulnerable poor communities who bear the brunt of climatic changes to be given opportunities to express themselves. There is a need to look into this information gap.

During the open forum, speakers agreed that the potential contributions from the poor communities must be sought in order to come up with an all inclusive plan. This will result in the crafting of plans and policies that are useful to and widely supported by them. When the results are dependent on the people, more effort is needed to strengthen the capacity of local people as well as to improve on their experiences and traditional knowledge in order to develop relevant techniques that can be included in national policies. -30-

Talk Show on Potentials of Remittances for Micro Enterprise Development

Remittances, the portion of migrant workers' earnings that are sent back home to their families, have been a critical means of financial support for families in the Philippines for a few decades now. For the most part, however, these inflows have been historically hidden from plain view and are not that easy to account for. But all that is changing as the scale of migration increases and the corresponding growth in remittances gains widespread attention.

This has been elaborated by the different speakers during the talk show on “Potentials of Remittances for Micro Enterprise Development” hosted by Ariel Ayala of the Catholic Media Network at the SM Megatrade Hall 3, Mandaluyong City, Metro Manila, Philippines, during the 3rd IFAD-Philippines Knowledge and Learning Market. It was attended by some 100 participants from various migrant groups, local government units, national government agencies, the media, and NGOs.

Angela Villalba, Executive Director of Unlad Kabayan Migrant Services Inc. pointed out some concerns:

• No direct link between remittances and rural development but remittance was able to put food on the table, send children to school and other activities related to household consumption
  
• There are few cases where remittances were put into micro enterprises in rural areas such as a rice center in Surigao, coco fiber processing in Davao and integrated farming in Bukidnon

Observations and insights from Mr. Benel Lagua, President & COO of the Small Business Guarantee & Finance Corporation:

• Remittances in 2008 amounted to PhP16.4 billion and continue to grow on an annual basis.
  
• The link between agriculture development and remittances has not been established, but that definitely the potential can be tapped, thus the need for real intervention and not just allow market forces to dominate.
  
• Remittances coming into families in the Philippines are spent for consumption, housing, and education.

Experiences and inputs from Sana F.K. Jatta, CPM of IFAD:

• IFAD study on remittances focuses on gender, behavior and the investments made using the money
  
• Study shows that more women remitted than men
  
• Remittances related to agriculture were for purchase of land and technology

The different speakers shared the same views and came up with the following suggestions and recommendations.

Ms. Villalba said that an NGO may suggest to IFAD, SBGFC, and other government agencies the promotion of social ventures supported by appropriate policies.

Mr. Lagua emphasized that remittances per se will not bring development; it is not the panacea or ultimate solution to our problems. Our migrant workers should be encouraged to invest in agriculture and the government should provide the necessary infrastructures and market opportunities as well.

Some feedback from the audience:

"The talk show was nice but the time was limited!" - Susan Perez, DAR-FAPsO.

"An informative and incisive discussion!" – Marlene Tablante, KLM-TWG


Reported by KLM3 Knowledge Facilitators:

Amor Grace B. Babaran
DARPO-IX, Zamboanga del Norte

Orlen Ocleasa
M&E Coordinator, ACDI VOCA

Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation: The Case of the Ikalahan Forest Carbon Development

The case was presented on 20 October 2009 during the 3rd IFAD-Philippines Knowledge and Learning Market, Mandaluyong City. Please see the following link for the actual slide presentation: http://www.slideshare.net/vcnmciremp/climate-change-mitigation-and-adaptation-the-case-of-the-ikalahan-forest-carbon-development

Ecosystem services (ES) have tremendous importance but they are rarely valued or, worse, they are not valued at all because the environment is almost always taken for granted. Since nature has been provided for free, everyone thinks that he can take everything he wants from the environment without paying for it, thus resulting to the decline of this very precious natural resource.

To be able to address this, the concept of Payment for Ecosystem Services (PES) was born to give value and importance to nature by paying the people who are actually taking care of it. PES, according to Wunder, is a voluntary transaction wherein an ES or a land-use that is likely to secure that ES is being provided by a seller, and is being bought by a buyer if and only if the seller continuously provides the service (i.e. the concept of conditionality).

Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) is one of the most popular PES schemes. CDM is the only flexibility mechanism that involves participation of developing countries through the reforestation and afforestation of their degraded areas to act as sinks for carbon, which can result to the adaptation and mitigation of climate change. Crucial to the CDM process is the product design document (PDD), which determines if the project can qualify or not.

Kalahan, which is located in the Province of Nueva Vizcaya, Philippines, has been selected by RUPES (Rewarding Upland Poor for Environmental Services they provide), as a site to pilot-test forest carbon development. The Ikalahan Ancestral Domain (IAD) is the home of Indigenous Peoples (IPs) Kalaguya and Ikahan, where they formed themselves as the Kalahan Educational Foundation (KEF) to battle out their rights of tenure to the land.

Kalahan has a great potential for forest carbon development. For instance, they already identified 900 hectares of denuded lands and grasslands, with an estimated carbon sequestration of around 90000 tCO2/20 years. Their strategy is community-based management employing forest-tree plantation and agroforestry farm development. The direct implementers would be the IP land/parcel owners themselves, and KEF would be the project proponent.

The World Agroforestry Center (ICRAF) through RUPES is extending technical and financial assistance and has helped in the preparation of KEF’s Project Identification Notes (PIN) and estimated the carbon baseline of grasslands and the potential carbon sequestration of the proposed site.

The Mitsubishi UFJ Securities (MUS) offered consultancy services to help KEF in the CDM process, through the PDD preparation up to the project’s application and registration to the United Nations Framework on Climate Change Convention (UNFCCC).

There are many challenges facing KEF, which include: 1) Coming up with a PDD, 2) actual field implementation, 3) project maintenance and monitoring.

So with these challenges, can KEF do it?

According to Emma Abasolo, “Yes they can! Kalahan has a great potential for forest carbon development. With IFAD, through RUPES’ financial and technical assistance, KEF has the potential to comply and meet the requirements of carbon markets.”


By KLM 3 Social Reporters: Emma Abasolo, ICRAF and Vherna Castilla, NMCIREMP