Chapter 5 Community Action Plan
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The Study for Socio-Economic Reconstruction and Development of Conflict-Affected Areas in Mindanao in the Republic of the Philippines SUPPLEMENTARY CHAPTER CHAPTER 5 COMMUNITY ACTION PLAN 5.1 INTRODUCTION This chapter will present the major analytical work derived from the results of the social surveys, covering both the Barangay Profiling which is discussed in Chapter 1 and the IBNA which was intensively discussed in Chapter 2. The findings of the IBNA and the Barangay Profiling were reviewed and cross-checked to describe an accurate picture of the current status of barangays in the conflict-affected areas (CAAM) and to introduce an action plan designed for their development. The latter is named the Community Action Plan or CAP. The ultimate goal of this study is the comprehensive formulation of a Socio Economic Development Plan (SEDP) designed for CAAM. This SEDP is sub-divided into four sections according to a timeline: namely, The Emergency Plan, The Short-term Plan, The Mid-term Plan, and The Long-term Plan. The Urgent Plan literally addresses the immediate rehabilitation and development needs of people at the community level so as to ensure human security in CAAM and prepare a foundation for broad-based development in the future. The CAP, which this chapter is aiming to propose, not only constitutes the core of the Emergency Plan but also underlies the Short-term Plan as well, thus significantly contributing to the formulation of the SEDP in the end. Specifically, the CAP is intended to provide concrete project options of various types that are ready for implementation in the immediate future. The CAP is therefore somewhat self-contained and quasi-independent from the entire structure of the SEDP which, in contrast, presents a comprehensive grand design and an overall strategy for socio-economic development in CAAM. It is imperative for the CAP to reflect the actual situation of the CAAM communities, respond to the actual needs, and address the issues people living there feel strongly about. Schematically speaking, the Barangay Profiling helped CAP depict the “actual situation” of the communities, in CAAM; while the IBNA reflected the “strongly felt needs” of people. It is however, apparently not easy to draw a line between the two aspects. In the following sections, we will first review the findings of the Barangay Profiling, and then move to the results of the IBNA, and finally integrate them to work out a CAP. In addition, a comparative analysis will be made concerning the existing studies of a similar nature that other donors have conducted in this area of the Philippines. S5-1 The Study for Socio-Economic Reconstruction and Development of Conflict-Affected Areas in Mindanao in the Republic of the Philippines SUPPLEMENTARY CHAPTER A few notes should be put on here. • This chapter includes many municipality-wise GIS maps to help readers understand geographical distribution of various subjects. Raw data and numerical statistics used for constructing these maps are not presented here due to the inconvenience of a large space the inclusion of such raw data requires. If the reader is interested in numerical basis of these maps, please use the Barangay Database which is one of products of this study. The Barangay Database may be obtained through the JICA Philippines Office. • Some readers may also notice that province-wise tables contained in this chapter are not translated into maps unlike municipality-wise GIS maps. This is because of possible misinterpretations such maps may lead to. This chapter is based largely on barangay data and to a lesser extent on municipality data. In some provinces, too small a number of samples are collected to justify painting a color in the entire area of province, which will be apparently misleading. Therefore the Study Team decided not to present province-wise GIS map in this chapter. 5.2 ANALYSIS OF BARANGAY PROFILING The Barangay Profiling successfully surveyed the socio-economic status of 3,532 barangays out of 3,856 target barangays through questionnaires and interviews. However, the rapidly deteriorating security conditions in Mindanao have blocked the implementation of the Barangay Profiling of all targeted barangays. Still, 92% of them were completed because of the extraordinary efforts of the project field workers, the BDA and barangay officials, under difficult circumstances. In order to clarify the socio-economics of the CAAM, the data gathered through the Barangay Profiling is summed up and analyzed on different layers, which are 1) the statistical universe of the entire CAAM area; 2) The provinces, 3) the areas comprising the three different topographical types, and 4) the ARMM and non-ARMM areas. Regarding the provinces, it is necessary to state that the data are merely representative of barangays which belong to CAAM within a province. Since some provinces only have a few barangays in CAAM, the survey results should not necessarily be interpreted as representing the whole province. This is particularly so in Davao Oriental, Compostela Valley, Sarangani and South Cotabato; because the number of samples is too small to represent the whole province in these cases. The three topographical types are Coastal, Highland and Planes. Barangays with a shoreline S5-2 The Study for Socio-Economic Reconstruction and Development of Conflict-Affected Areas in Mindanao in the Republic of the Philippines SUPPLEMENTARY CHAPTER are classified as Coastal, ones located in mountainous areas are classified as Highland, and all other barangays are classified as Planes. The barangays were categorized into these types with GIS map information brought by the Field Teams. However, it is important to note that classification into these three topographical types is not based on objective numerical data. Correlation analysis was also undertaken to understand the relationship between socio-economic variables on this layer. The Barangay Profiling has also gathered information on development needs from barangay officials. However, we consider that it is not as accurate as the development needs identified though the IBNA since the Barangay Profiling does not include a process of consensus making in communities. As a result, the Barangay Profiling tends to represent the needs perceived from the community leaders’ point of view. We should therefore assume that the Barangay Profiling data on development needs are best used to understand the general tendency of the development needs structure in CAAM. Yet, we will see later, the overall similarities as well as specific differences that exist between the needs identified through IBNA and the Barangay Profiling. The following describes only the broad overall socio-economic situation of the CAAM on which the social survey has shed light. (1) Population According to the survey, the total population of the CAAM is 5,573,487, with the average population of a barangay being 1,625. The population density of the area is 224 people per sq. km. The population density of the southern CAAM is lower relative to that of the northern areas as reflected in Figure 5.2-1 below. Population Density 500 400 300 200 100 50 10 Figure 5.2-1 Population Density per km² by Municipality S5-3 The Study for Socio-Economic Reconstruction and Development of Conflict-Affected Areas in Mindanao in the Republic of the Philippines SUPPLEMENTARY CHAPTER Concerning the religious make up, the Muslim population slightly exceeds 50% of the total population in the entire CAAM. There is a clear trend in terms of religious distribution as shown in Figure 5.2-2. In ARMM areas, 89% of the total population is Muslim, while the same ratio is mere 27% in Non-ARMM CAAM (See Chart 5.2-1). It is expected that the proportion of the Muslim population in an area is positively correlated with the number of madrasah, or Muslim schools, in the area, but it is worrisome that the same population is negatively correlated with the number of health centers, day care centers and people’s organizations (PO). We speculate that this may be the result of physical damages and social hindrances – including weak governance – attributable to the political instability and prolonged conflict in areas with Muslim majorities. The comparison between ARMM and non-ARMM CAAM also highlights the comparative underdevelopment of ARMM areas in terms of educational facilities, health facilities, toilet facilities and electrification among other things. (%) 80 60 40 20 Figure 5.2-2 Proportion of the Muslim population by Municipality (%) S5-4 The Study for Socio-Economic Reconstruction and Development of Conflict-Affected Areas in Mindanao in the Republic of the Philippines SUPPLEMENTARY CHAPTER Chart 5.2-1 Muslim population in ARMM and Non-ARMM Areas (%) ARMM Non-ARMM The ethnicity in the region is composed mainly of four groups; i) Maguindanao, ii) Maranao, iii) Cebuano and iv) Illongo. These four groups combined account for more than 70% of the total population (See Chart 5.2-2). As shown in Figure 5.2-3, a geographical pattern appears in the distribution of the ethnic groups. Cebuano people live mainly in the Zamboanga Peninsula and the southern part of Mindanao. Maranao is the majority group in the Lanao area. The Maguindanao mostly live in the provinces surrounding Cotabato City, and from the edge of Maguindanao many Ilongo-majority barangays are present. Maguindanao Maranao Cebuano Ilonggo Ilocano Iranon Subanen Tawsog Tiruray Yakan Others Figure 5.2-3 Major Ethnic Groups by Municipality There is also a clear relationship between ethnicity and topographical types as shown in Chart 5.2-3. The Plains areas have a higher Maguindanao population, while Maranao and Cebuano are the largest ethnic groups in the Highlands and Coastal areas respectively. S5-5 The Study for Socio-Economic Reconstruction and Development of Conflict-Affected Areas in Mindanao in the Republic of the Philippines SUPPLEMENTARY CHAPTER In the context of ARMM and non-ARMM areas, ARMM areas have larger Maguindanao and Maranao populations, the combination of which accounts for almost 70% of the total population.