Vulnerability and Capacity Assessment Report
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VULNERABILITY AND CAPACITY ASSESSMENT Republic of the Philippines Province of La Union Municipality of Luna, La Union Barangay Rimos #3 VULNERABILITY AND CAPACITY ASSESSMENT REPORT Supported by: EPIC DRR project “Empowering the Philippine Red Cross (PRC) and their chapters, communities and government institutions to consolidate and replicate inclusive community based disaster risk reduction in seven provinces in the Philippines” Philippine Red Cross La Union – San Fernando City Chapter September 2017 VULNERABILITY AND CAPACITY ASSESSMENT i. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT This document is developed with the efforts of the Philippine Red Cross and German Red Cross through the BMZ II Project. First of all, the VCA Team would like to express their sincerest gratitude to the Almighty God for guiding us in the whole process of the Vulnerability and Capacity Assessment conducted at Barangay Rimos # 3, Luna, La Union. To the whole community of Barangay Rimos # 3 especially the Barangay Officials headed by the Barangay Captain Mr. Mariano Garcia Jr. for their efforts in accomplishing the different VCA tools and in actively participating in all the given activities. For the time they spent for supporting the barangay in conducting the actual gathering and analysis of data, their expertise, sincere and valuable guidance and encouragement to the people of the barangay during the VCA process. Further, to the Local Government of the Municipality of Luna, especially Mayor Victor Marvin Marron and Mr. Ricardo Manangan the LDRRMO of Luna, for supporting the team and providing all the necessary data needed during the VCA process. Lastly, to the Philippine Red Cross La Union - San Fernando City Chapter, the Chapter Administrator Ms. Almira V. Abrazado, the staffs, volunteers and the whole family of La Union Chapter, sincerest thanks for providing the team with an unending love, support, understanding and your precious time to make activities and the project successful. Sincerest thank you to all! VULNERABILITY AND CAPACITY ASSESSMENT ii. GLOSSARY BDRRMP – Barangay Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Plan BDRRMC - Barangay Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Committee CSOs – Civil Society Organizations GRC – German Red Cross LGU – Local Government Unit MRF – Material Recovery Facility NGO – Non-Government Organization PRC – Philippine Red Cross VCA – Vulnerability and Capacity Assessment VULNERABILITY AND CAPACITY ASSESSMENT Contents 1. INTRODUCTION/PURPOSE ..................................................................................................................5 2. PLACE AND TIME OF THE VCA.............................................................................................................5 3. BACKGROUND INFORMATION / COMMUNITY PROFILE.....................................................................5 4. GENERAL CLIMATE CONDITIONS.........................................................................................................7 5. GENERAL SOCIO- ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT IN THE LAST 5 YEARS..................................................7 6. INFRASTRUCTURES, BASIC SERVICES AND UTILITIES ..........................................................................7 7. GOVERNANCE......................................................................................................................................8 8. OBJECTIVES OF THE VCA .....................................................................................................................9 9. VCA PROCESS ......................................................................................................................................9 10. FINDINGS...........................................................................................................................................11 12. ATTACHMENTS ..................................................................................................................................16 VULNERABILITY AND CAPACITY ASSESSMENT 1. INTRODUCTION/PURPOSE Vulnerability-Capacity Assessment (VCA) is a method of investigation into the risks that people face in their locality, their vulnerability to those risks and their capacity to cope with and recover from disasters. Its purpose is to increase community members’ awareness of risk and help them to plan activities for reducing vulnerability and increasing capacity before a disaster. VCA is a tool that enables local priorities to be identified and leads to the design of actions that contribute to disaster reduction. Thus, VCA is an integral part (but not the only part) of disaster risk reduction that can contribute to the creation of Community-based disaster preparedness programmes. For this, VCA should result in actions that community members can undertake and lead themselves. VCA is conducted using participatory approach, which facilitate to gather information and evaluate which can be used in decision making of the community to be able to respond or recover from disaster. This can also be used for recommendation purposes for the community to ask for assistance in small scale mitigation project for the barangay. It is expected the Government and non-government partners to use this to work together to strengthen Disaster Risk Reduction in every community. This Vulnerability and Capacity Assessment (VCA) was conducted in Barangay Rimos #3, Luna, La Union during the month of October 2017. A total of 55 people participated the barangay. All those participants represent various groups including Barangay Officials, Barangay Health Workers, Senior Citizens, Civil Volunteer Organization members, 4P’s and other community volunteers and they were able to identify their risks posed by various hazards and means of mitigating those risks. This report presents the main outputs of the Vulnerability Capacity Assessment of the community, its possible solutions through action plan. 2. PLACE AND TIME OF THE VCA Place Region I Province La Union Municipality Luna Barangay Rimos #3 No. of sitios/puroks 7 Date Data gathering: October 27 – 28, 2017 Report preparation: March to July 2018 3. BACKGROUND INFORMATION / COMMUNITY PROFILE 3.1 Geography and topography of the barangay Rimos # 3 is one of the barangay in the municipality of Luna, Province of La Union. It is a coastal area which is bounded by the West Philippine Sea on the West side; Rimos # 4 on the North; Suyo on the East and Rimos # 2 on the South. 3.2 History of the barangay Rimos is the biggest barrio of the municipality of Luna in population. It is the northern most barrio of the town along the shore. It is bounded on the north by Paratong, a barrio of the town of Bangar, on VULNERABILITY AND CAPACITY ASSESSMENT the east by the barrios of Oaqui and Suyo, on the south by the barrio of Santo Domingo and on the west the China Sea. The fishing bank on the China Sea, the lagoon with the variety of fish on the eastern side which is part of the Busilac river and the fertile land along the shore of the lagoon extending as far as Oaqui and Suyo, influenced immigrants from Ilocos Sur to settle and make their homes permanently in this place. The early settlers were engaged in dyeing cotton yarn with the use of indigo plants called in the vernacular dialect as “sinamraw”. These people landed at the Punduan on the northeastern part of Rimos. They found out that the place was a favorable for their industry, because the indigo plant grows well on the sandy soil. The indigo plants are gathered and kept in vessels with water turn to blue-black liquid, which will then be used, for dyeing cotton yarn. Cotton dyeing has been developed as the home industry of the women, but the main occupation of the people was fishing and farming. As years rolled on, more people immigrated from Narvacan and other thickly populated places in Ilocos Sur. They landed at Punduan and extended their settlement further to the south. They were attracted by the bountiful catch of fish, not only from the sea, but also from the lagoon. The catches of fish were found to be more than sufficient to maintain their families. Once a quarrel among the settlers arose, which was started when new settlers tried to cut the “Imos” tree so that the clearing could be used as the place of settlement and the tree to be used for constructing their aide. The quarrel then became a quarrel among kins and relatives. One of the early settlers possessing special talent and wisdom, by the name of “ Lacay” Ido was the consultant of the settlers, and regarded his judgement as final, in view of his fairness in treating all controversial issues. One Sunday morning all men who were prevented in cutting the “Imos” tree, called on the residence of “Lacay” Ido and presented their grievances and their conditions – homeless, yet they love to live with their kins and relatives to enjoy the same rights and privileges over the abundance of fish in the sea and in the lagoon. “Ana ti rii?” meaning what is the trouble, was asked by Lacay Ido, in one of the meeting. One of the early settlers explained that their kins and relatives whom they have convinced to immigrate to the locality because life in this new region is far better than in Narvacan and other places in lagoon, created no joy among the settlers, because they cut down trees which are very useful to the women engaged in the making of “senamraw”. Then Lacay Ido said “Riri? Imos?” At this juncture, a priest with town officials with him arrived and heard the remarks of Lacay Ido before the assembly of the settlers. The priest and the town officials held conference with