LGUs’ development efforts to get boost

Authorities will guide Philippine local government units (LGUs) on mainstreaming poverty and environment (PE) concerns into respective development planning and programming initiatives to help better improve conditions nationwide.
Such assistance is part of the Philippines Poverty Environment Initiative (PPEI), a collaborative poverty reduction and environmental sustainability program of United Nations Development Programme, United Nations Environment Program and the Philippine government withDepartment of Interior and Local Government (DILG) as leadimplementing partner.
“We’ll prepare a handbook and training manual on integrating PE linkages in planning and programming of LGUs nationwide,” DILG’s PPEI project management officer Rose Ann Cruz said Tuesday on the side of the Mining Philippines 2012 exhibit in Manila.
She said LGUs must be guided accordingly since not all these already mainstreamed PE concerns in respective planning and programming activities.
“We’re trying to find an entry point on how to really mainstream the matter in LGUs’ comprehensive land use plan, annual investment plan, development plan and executive-legislative agenda,” she said.
LGUs that will benefit from information in the handbook and manual are ‘barangay’ villages, municipalities, cities and provinces, she noted.
Cruz said baseline studies authorities conducted last year in four pilot sites will be among inputs for the target publications.
The pilot sites are Bgy. Taganito in Claver, Surigao del Norte, Aroroy municipality of Masbate province; Toledo City in Cebu province and Benguet province, she said.
“In those sites, we’ll pre-test the handbook and manual next year,” she noted.
Cruz said the government and its partners aim to publish both guides before 2012 ends.
Government and its partners commenced undertaking PPEI last year in line with the 2011-2016 Philippine Development Plan’s goal of enhancing nationwide competitiveness and growth.
The partnership seeks to strengthen local development planning on use of natural resources and revenues derived from these.
Such resources include mineral deposits around the country. [PNA]