CCC Vows to Help More LGUs Access Funds for climate change Adaptation Projects
July 22, 2019 Monday
MANILA, July 22, 2019 — The Climate Change Commission (CCC) will ensure that more climate change adaptation projects of the local governments can be supported by the People’s Survival Fund (PSF) with the launch of the free PSF e-Learning Platform and Mentoring Sessions in August at the rollout of the Communities for Resilience (CORE) Modular Training for the Yolanda Corridor.
The move affirms the Duterte administration’s commitment to strengthen the country’s resilience to the devastating impacts of climate change, said CCC Secretary Emmanuel De Guzman. “Climate resilience is at the heart of the Duterte Administration’s development agenda. This inspires us in the CCC to come up with innovative solutions that will enable more local government units (LGUs) to implement community-led adaptation initiatives,”De Guzman said.
Passed into law as Republic Act No. 10174 in 2012, PSF is a national funding mechanism in support to LGUs in implementing climate change adaptation projects. It maintains an annual allocation of one billion pesos. “CCC has accelerated the implementation of its CORE Program in the past years to help LGUs develop and enhance their Local Climate Change Action Plans (LCCAPs) and to assist PSF project proponents develop science and risk-based adaptation funding proposals,” said CCC PSF Unit head Assistant Secretary Romell Antonio Cuenca.
Since the PSF grant approval and disbursement system was established, the PSF Board has approved six climate change adaptation projects amounting to P330 million. They are the Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Response as Coping Mechanism to Resiliency in Lanuza, Surigao del Sur; Siargao Climate Field School for Farmers and Fisherfolks in Del Carmen, Surigao del Norte; Building Resilience through Community-based Ecological Farming in San Francisco, Camotes Island, Cebu; Promoting Resiliency and Climate-Informed Gerona, Tarlac; Establishment and Sustainable Management of River Ecosystem in Kitcharao, Agusan del Norte; and Saub Watershed Ecosystem Rehabilitation and Flood Risk Reduction for Increased Resilience in Sarangani.
Cuenca explained that most of the proposals received by the PSF Board Secretariat at the Department of Finance have been either business-as-usual projects or those kinds usually funded under regular programs of national government agencies, and not climate change adaptation which the law asks; thus, the low-approval rate. “This year, we are working towards widening the scope of technical support to LGUs for accessing the PSF. An e-learning platform has been developed, and a series of one-on-one mentoring sessions is set for the third quarter. They aim to improve the soundness and worthiness of submitted proposals and to assist LGUs in develop full-blown proposals from their concept notes,” Cuenca said.
The PSF e-Learning Platform, which runs through an open source learning management system, will be conducted via a 12-week online course for LGUs and community organizations to enhance their knowledge on climate and disaster risk and vulnerability assessment, the PSF and its approval processes, and other sources of climate finance. There will be two batches per year, which will run from August-October and February-June.
Employing the latest information technology, Cuenca said, the CCC is also launching the PSF Monitoring and Evaluation System where proponents can track their proposals and submit documents online. In this manner, he said, the process of accessing the fund becomes easier and more convenient and with lesser costs to the proponents. The system will also ensure a more efficient and transparent evaluation and approval process for PSF grants.
Details of the PSF e-Learning Platform and Mentoring Session are available on the CCC website [email protected], PSF website [email protected], and CCC’s Facebook and Twitter accounts. For inquiries, interested groups could contact the CCC-CCO PSF Unit at (02) 420-5513 or Telefax at (02) 420-5517, or via email at [email protected].
