“Public investments should be safe from any geo-hazard,” said National Economic Development Authority (NEDA) 11 Regional Director Ma. Lourdes Lim when she bared the NEDA’s move to mainstream risk reduction management in local development programming and budgetting.
NEDA has come up with the guidelines on mainstreaming risk reduction and climate change through the assistance of the European-funded United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Lim said.
NEDA is sharing with local governments its technical knowledge on incorporating risk reduction management in development programming and budgeting to ensure the safety of public investments from geohazards.
“Sites for public projects should be considered for their safety factor,” she said in an interview after turning over last Wednesday to Davao del Norte Gov. Rodolfo P. Del Rosario the reviewed pieces of documents which were outputs of the Provincial/Local Planning and Expenditure Management (P/LPEM) project that gained the support of Asian Development Bank.
Lim viewed as “very important” to consider the safety of public investment even at the planning and budgetting stages as natural disasters such as heavy rains and typhoons were noted to have been occurring more often.
She noted that the government often goes back to square one as it keeps rehabilitating and putting up again and again public infrastructures damaged by frequent natural calamities.
“But if we are more intelligent in studying our environment, we would know better where to put our buildings, bridges such that, they will not be prone to damage by disasters ,” she said. The NEDA initiative to mainstream disaster risk reduction management in local development programming and budgetting will cover all provinces in the country.
Meanwhile, Lim cited Davao del Norte and Compostela Valley for producing P/PLEM outputs, which turned out “the best as noted by ADB (Asian Development Bank) consultants,” she said in the same interview.
As pilot beneficiaries of P/PLEM project, Davao del Norte and Compostela Valley produced their respective Provincial Development and Physical Framework Plan, Provincial Development and Investment Plan, and Project Evaluation and Development Proposal.
In the document turn-over ceremony in Davao del Norte last September 28, Gov. Del Rosario expressed confidence that the provincial government will “now be in a better position to pursue good governance” after it went through the rigorous process of coming up with P/PLEM document.
Del Rosario expected to “see an ample increase in our savings” as he pointed out that a sound plan serves as a blueprint of wise expenditure. [PIA-11/JEANE DURON-ABANGAN]
“With this, on top of our programs aimed at generating local revenue, I am optimistic that the Dabaonon people shall soon witness and experience a more economically viable Davao del Norte,” he said.
He also viewed the local planning and expenditure management pieces of document as instruments of cutting off debts “while making more socially, economically and culturally relevant PPAs (programs, projects and activities).”
