Philippines: Integrated Flood Risk Management Sector Project

Agriculture, natural resources and rural development / Rural flood protection - Rural water policy, institutional and capacity development

The Philippines, a disaster-prone country, endured 274 natural calamities from 1995 to 2015. It ranks third among the countries with the highest disaster risk and is among the top 10 countries with the most people affected by disasters.

The government's Nationwide Operational Assessment of Hazards project has mapped flood hazards in the country. The River Basin Control Office within the Department of Environment and Natural Resources has coordinated preparing the Integrated River Basin Management and Development Plans for all 18 major national river basins. Yet, FRM planning has not been conducted to reduce flood hazards, protect communities from floods, regulate and/or adapt land-use, and raise awareness and preparedness. Further, institutional capacity in FRM is limited, construction standards are poor, coordination is weak, and a flood protection asset management system is absent.

Flood protection infrastructure is inadequate due to (i) limited infrastructure investment; (ii) suboptimal flood infrastructure design that do not consider climate change; (iii) restricted access to international expertise and implementation of innovative concepts such as _Room for the River_ and _Nature-Based Solutions_; and (iv) reduced sustainability due to lack of resources for operation and maintenance.

In all the target six basins, low-income families cluster around or along flood-prone areas. Land conversions and erosion exacerbate the situation.

The Philippine Development Plan, 2017-2022 acknowledges that disaster and climate risks erode development gains and hamper the country's potential. The Philippine Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Act of 2010 empowers local stakeholders to directly engage in disaster risk reduction efforts, whilst recognizing the particular vulnerabilities of marginalized groups. The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Plan 2011-2028 covers four thematic areas: (i) prevention and mitigation; (ii) preparedness; (iii) response; and (iv) rehabilitation and recovery. Following these plans, the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Strategy Map 2022 includes an outcome of lives and properties protected from natural disasters and two outputs: (i) mitigating flood damage in major river basins and principal rivers and (ii) building climate-resilient structures in calamity prone areas.

Strategic flood risk management planning improved.

Flood protection infrastructure in six major river basins developed.

Community-based flood risk management implemented.