8 barangays renew partnership, 19 more added for CDP's DRR project in Mindanao

ZAMBOANGA CITY - The Barangay Local Government of San Jose Gusu, represented by Punong Barangay Joel Estiban, has forged partnership with the Center for Disaster Preparedness anew here Monday, February 4, 2019. The partnership was officially sealed through a project orientation and a symbolic signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between CDP, represented by its Project Manager, Malu Fellizar-Cagay, and the BLGU at Southern City Colleges.

This is but one of the many other signing ceremonies and project orientations scheduled to take place in different barangays in Zamboanga Peninsula in the days and weeks to come. Asked why it was so important for the project to hold such a ceremony, Cagay said, "We do it in each barangay para ma-orient ang mga taga-community. Bringing the information close to the people."

This project, Participation in Resilience Building and Organizing Safe and Progressive communities for Empowerment, Climate and Disaster Risk Reduction (PROSPER) has, in its first year, contributed to building the adaptive capacity and community resiliency to hazard of flood in the communities covering the 57,759 at-risk and vulnerable individuals and their families in the three provinces and one key city in the region of Zamboanga Peninsula. The impetus for its second year bears the need to consolidate the gains and learnings that would further strengthen the governance and leadership of local government units.

The table below shows all the focus barangays of the project now on its second year:

In addition to these 8 barangays, 19 more flood-prone barangays were added as target communities in Tambulig. The municipality of Tambulig is a natural catchment basin for the upper municipalities like Josefina, Dumingag and Molave of Zamboanga del Sur; and for the other municipality of Bonifacio in Misamis Oriental. An inter-LGU protocol will be developed with three other municipalities outside of the project areas. Tambulig stands to benefit from the enhancement of a municipal-wide early warning system which will be integrated with other LGUs'.

Sectoral representatives have also indicated support to the project by signing as witnesss, while everybody else present pledged to commit to the project and their community by signing their name on the commitment board.

The project brief was attended by various leaders from barangay and city government units, sectoral representatives, and media personnel.