The Department of the Interior and Local Government – National Capital Region (DILG-NCR) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and its consortium partners for the Strengthening Institutions and Empowering Localities Against Disasters and Climate Change (SHIELD) Programme on July 13, 2023, at the UNDP House in the City of Mandaluyong.
The MOU signing formalizes the support of UNDP and its consortium partners to implement the Upscaling Plans for Resilient Urban Governance (UPSURGE) Project conceptualized by DILG-NCR. The project aims to enhance the capacity of local government units (LGUs) in the NCR to develop and implement risk-informed local development plans.
DILG-NCR Regional Director Maria Lourdes L. Agustin, CESO III and UNDP Resident Representative Dr. Selva Ramachandran signed the MOU. Standing as witnesses to the signing were Ms. Mei Santos, Australian Embassy in the Philippines Portfolio Manager for Humanitarian Action and Disaster Resilience, and the SHIELD Programme Consortium Partners, represented by Mr. Christopher Rollo, UN-Habitat Philippines Country Program Manager; Ms. Julieta Labayan, Philippine Business for Social Progress (PBSP) Project Manager; and Mr. Christopher Estallo, National Resilience Council (NRC) Program Manager. Also in attendance to represent the DILG Central Office was DILG Bureau of Local Government Development (BLGD) Local Development Planning Division Chief Maria Angela Monica Salud Barrientos-Mamuyac.
Risk-informed local development planning is essential to build resilience and promote sustainable development. With the support of the SHIELD Programme to the UPSURGE Project, Dr. Ramachandran is optimistic that the LGUs in the region will become more proactive in co-developing solutions and innovative approaches to resilience-building. “We cannot stop disasters and climate change from happening, but we can cope and put mechanisms and systems in place to build the people’s resilience. In that sense, multi-stakeholder partnership is an important principle of SHIELD. I am glad that we are here today to sign the MOU, and what we hope to see is for our partnership to transform into action,” said Dr. Ramachandran in his welcome remarks.
Recognizing the complexity of disaster and climate risks, Regional Director Agustin underscored the importance of establishing multi-stakeholder partnerships, stating, “we recognize that resilience-building is a complex process; this is the reason why we need partners like the SHIELD Programme to help us navigate and address various challenges stemming from the multiple interacting risks of disaster and climate change.”
For her part, Ms. Maria Victoria de Guzman, SHIELD Programme Manager, discussed the salient milestones of the SHIELD-UPSURGE linkage. “The goal of SHIELD to build resilience through multi-stakeholder partnerships is also what UPSURGE aims to do. UPSURGE has two workstreams: the first is to enhance the knowledge and capacity of LGUs to develop risk-informed plans, and the second is to apply the multi-stakeholder partnership approach toward resilience. These align with the key outputs of SHIELD, including the establishment of LGU engagements, capacity development program on risk-informed planning and budgeting, and local monitoring, evaluation, and learning system,” Ms. de Guzman explained.
The Australian Government has allocated AUD 18 million to support the implementation of the SHIELD Programme in 11 of the country’s most vulnerable provinces, along with 16 cities and one municipality in NCR. Representing the Australian Embassy in the Philippines, Ms. Santos reiterated, “we are very happy to launch this project with DILG as our official government partner. The Department has been instrumental in helping us move forward with the implementation of the flagship resilience investment of the Australian Government in the Philippines. We look forward to working closely with the LGUs of NCR in developing and implementing disaster and climate resilience actions.”
In closing, Division Chief Barrientos-Mamuyac relayed the message of BLGD Assistant Director Alfonso A. Maralli, Jr., CESO IV, reaffirming DILG’s commitment to building a vibrant, inclusive, and resilient future for Filipinos – “we look forward to DILG-NCR and UNDP working together to effectively implement the SHIELD Programme and UPSURGE Project for the benefit of our local communities. Rest assured that the DILG Central Office, through the BLGD, shall provide the necessary support and assistance to meet the goal and objectives of our partnership.”