By Catherine Teves
MANILA, (PNA) — Government is proposing for next year a P59 billion total budget for its nationwide climate change and disaster risk reduction and management (DRRM) program.
Budget chief Florencio Abad said government decided to push for such budget as climate change is already a make-or-break factor in the country’s bid for sustainable development.
“We won’t be able to achieve sustainable development if our policies, institutions and resources aren’t aligned with the bid to address climate change,” he said Thursday (Oct. 3) at the first summit Laguna Lake Development Authority spearheaded in Metro Manila to help address water and flood management issues plaguing the Laguna de BayBasin.
Abad noted government came up with the proposal using the program budgeting approach, a good governance tool which promotes target-specific fund-setting.
“It’s important to strategically focus resources and efforts on geohazard areas especially the country’s 18 major river basins,” he said.
Abad said among allocations under the climate change and DRRM program’s proposed 2014 budget is PhP1.2 billion for the environment and science departments’ production of geohazard maps.
“By 2016, detailed geohazard mapping of all LGUs must be completed,” he said.
The maps aim to guide LGUs on geohazards these face so each can identify and implement respective DRRM measures to better protect life, limb and property there.
Information in the maps will also enable government to cohesively roll out irrigation, flood control and other infrastructure critical to development amidst climate change, Abad noted.
“With clear knowledge of the terrain, we’ll be able to ramp up spending on the right projects,” he likewise said.
Abad noted other proposed allocations for the climate change and DRRM program include P25.6 billion for the public works department’s flood control undertakings, up from the P12.4 billion 2013 budget for the purpose.
“Government is also investing heavily on building the social infrastructure for climate change,” he continued.
He noted government proposed for 2014 P10.8 billion for the quick response fund of key agencies that respond to people affected by disasters.
He said funding for such purpose only reached P5 billion in 2011.
Government further allocated some P10.4 billion for housing of about 106,000 informal settler families (ISFs) in Metro Manila’s danger areas, Abad said.
He said some PhP5.5 billion under National Housing Authority was allocatedfor resettling about 20,000 ISFs.
Government also allocated another P3.7 billion for assisting some 6,000 ISFs through the community mortgage program, he noted.
NHA is government’s housing production arm.
“It has been said climate change is a concept but as we’ve seen, it’s already a reality that affects people in direct and concrete terms, ” Abad said.
He reassured government will continue pursuing efforts for promoting prudence and transparency in using public funds so these can be spent on the right priorities and with measurable results.
“Let me assure that putting climate change in the heart of national budgeting is a critical aspect of our budget reform agenda,” he said.