Program Brief: Environment & Rural Development Program GIZ

Environment and Rural Development (EnRD) Program Brief

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Program Brief: From Ridge to Reef: Sustaining Nature for Life

From Ridge to Reef: Sustaining Nature for Life Sustainable Management of Natural Resources for Poverty Reduction The continuing degradation of natural resources—in combination with the unchecked population growth and other factors—are the main drivers of poverty among the rural population in the Philippines. ‘From Ridge to Reef ’, an integrated, eco-systems-based approach, is applied by GIZ and its partner agencies to reduce poverty by promoting rural development and the sustainable use of natural resources.

Partners: National Government Line Agencies, Department of Agriculture (DA), Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR), Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG), Local Government Units (LGUs), NonGovernment Organizations (NGOs), Academe and the Private Sector Target Groups: Poor farm and fisherfolk families, agrarian reform beneficiaries and landless people Duration: July 2005 to June 2014 Location: Visayas focusing on Region 6 to 8 (Panay, Negros, Leyte, Samar); Region 5 ( Albay, Sorsogon) Province of Isabela and the Caraga Region Donors: Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), European Commission (EC) and (Food Facility, DIPECHO)

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Context Poverty is mainly a rural phenomenon in the Philippines as 75% of the over 30,000,000 poor live in the rural areas. Their poverty correlates with the continuing destruction and degradation of forests, soils, rivers, coral reefs, mangroves and the unique marine life. Rural and coastal communities particularly depend on natural resources for food, shelter, potable water, cash income and protection from natural hazards. An additional threat is climate change, affecting the resilience of ecosystems even more. Thus, the sustainable management of natural resources is the key to sustainable reduction of poverty in the rural areas.

Rapid population growth, unchecked and unequal access to natural resources and their subsequent over-exploitation, uncontrolled logging, waste disposal and mining and the pollution of rivers, lakes and the sea are the root causes of the environmental destruction and degradation both in coastal and upland areas.

Coastal areas, where most people live, depend on intact upland areas. This becomes most evident when it comes to water for the growing population. With dwindling forests, the water retention capacity and regular water supply of lowland communities are seriously endangered.

It is, therefore, high time to adopt nationwide a development approach that aims at intact, resilient watersheds, ‘from ridge to reef ’.

The Philippine Government and some Local Government Units (LGUs) at the Provincial, Municipal/City, and Barangay levels are aware of this situation, and seek to improve it. Yet, quite often they are hampered by inconsistent laws and overlapping mandates, insufficient budgets and human resources.

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Approach The EnRD program is jointly implemented by the DA, DAR, DENR, and the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH. It seeks to strengthen the capacity of relevant government agencies at all levels to promote rural development and to sustainably manage natural resources.

On the national level, EnRD supports the Convergence Initiative (CI) among the three rural departments—DA, DAR and DENR—in harmonizing policies and related support services.

EnRD also facilitates the coordination in the rural development sector as a whole through the Philippine Development Forum (PDF) where it co-chairs the Working Group on Sustainable Rural Development (WG SRD).

On local levels, EnRD generates best practices in its fields of work (see right) by testing innovative approaches for replication and nationwide up-scaling.

Thereby, it promotes an integrated (from ridge to reef ) development approach: local development needs and priorities are generated through a participative planning process. Due consideration is paid to the specific needs of people (men and women, young and elderly) living in different ecosystems (forests, uplands, lowlands, and coastal areas). The appropriate use of natural resources is jointly debated and agreed upon, within the given legal framework and based on national and provincial planning guidelines. User rules and development priorities are documented in the prescribed comprehensive land use and development plans.

Subsequently, respective ordinances are issued to form the basis for the enforcement of such site specific rules. In addition, communities are encouraged to try out innovative methods and techniques to showcase how to reconcile the conservation of natural resources with food security, income generation and other needs. Conflict and gender sensitivity is applied as an underlying principle.

Fields of Work n n n n n n n

Policy advocacy Land use and development planning Coastal fisheries resources management Community-based forest management Food security Disaster risk management, and Solid waste management

Success Story Fish Fiesta in Barangay Ambao Some years back, Barangay Ambao’s fishing grounds were almost depleted. Local politicians and government officials recognized that they had to act to sustain the food supply. Jointly with EnRD advisers, they identified marine areas with a good potential for recovery. A 32 ha area along the coast was declared as a protected area. Villagers and fishermen learned to manage and to protect this zone. Within a year, the fish population increased remarkably. From the improved catch in the waters surrounding the protected area, 70 families can now regularly feed themselves and generate additional cash income.

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Results Policy Advocacy and Strategic Steering Harmonized policies and improved cooperation are evolving among the departments relevant to rural development at national and sub-national levels. The PDF WG SRD provides an excellent platform for information and experience sharing for the strategic steering of rural development.

Natural Resources Governance Two provincial plans (PDPFP) and three Comprehensive Land Use Plans (CLUP) approved, six municipalities and one city finalized their draft plans; 330 barangays covered with barangay plans. 30 LGUs currently implement PLUDP in Region 6 and 8 with 1,100,000 beneficiaries.

3,000 households benefited from priority projects supported in 2010 with rural development funds. Real Property Taxes (RPT) are now collected electronically in 18 municipalities in Leyte with an average increase of 33%; seven municipalities have integrated RPT into land use planning Integrated Coastal Management 40 ICM plans formulated and under various stages of implementation in Regions 6 and 8 10,300+ sq.km of improved fishery management in Regions 6 and 8. 393 sq.km. have been designated and maintained / managed as Marine Protected Areas in 40 municipalities in Regions 6 and 8. Next to the protection of a unique and invaluable biodiversity, fish catch has increased two to five folds.

Community-Based Forest Management 15 municipalities have prepared their Forest Land Use Plans and 15 Co-Managements Agreements between DENR and LGUs signed. 35 partner municipalities have established a Municipal Environment and Natural Resource Office. 6,100 ha natural forest managed and protected, 2,890 ha reforested / enriched and 1,855 ha agroforestry areas established.

One People’s Organization has demonstrated sustainable plantation timber harvesting and value-adding.

Contact Dr. Walter Salzer Program Director Deutsche Gesellschaft fĂźr Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH 2B PDCP Bank Centre V.A. Rufino cor. L.P. Leviste Sts. Salcedo Village, Makati City Philippines Phone +63 2 892 9051 local 101 Fax +62 2 892 3374 Email walter.salzer@giz.de Web www.enrdph.org

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Enhancement of Food Security 46, 000+ households from 26 LGUs in Leyte and Southern Leyte provinces have benefitted directly and indirectly from cash-for-work measures. 50% savings in construction of farm to market roads from PhP5,000 to PhP2,500 per lineal meter; rehabilitation of irrigation systems from PhP3,200 to PhP1,600. A provincial and a municipal fish hatcheries were constructed– producing and distributing an average of 5 million fingerlings annually. 62 kilometers of farm-to-market roads rehabilitated. In Anawahan, the 6 kilometers farm-to-market road has decreased transportation cost of farm products by at least 20%. 7,534 in 28 municipalities benefited from crop insurance schemes to mitigate losses caused by natural disasters.

Disaster Risk Management 220,000+ persons benefit from Flood Early Warning Systems (FEWS) in eight watersheds. By 2011, interviewees reported up to 80% less flood damage after the establishment of FEWS. Eight municipalities expressed a substantial increase of risk reduction related budget, securing the safety of 200,000+ inhabitants.

Solid Waste Management Eight partner municipalities/cities serving a population of over 1,500,000 people properly manage sanitary landfills and apply waste recycling with recovery rates of up to 69 percent, of which two recover more than 20 percent of their operation costs through fees.

GIZ is a federally-owned enterprise that supports the German government in the field of international development cooperation. For more than 30 years now, GIZ has been cooperating with Philippine partners in strengthening the capacity of people and institutions to improve the lives of Filipinos in this generation and generations to come. Together we work to balance economic, social and ecological interests through multi-stakeholder dialogue, participation and collaboration.

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