SHIFTING PARADIGMS TO REDUCE POVERTY: THE STRATEGY OF ORIENTAL

A Revisit of the Challenges

Oriental Mindoro is located in Region IV‐B, otherwise known as the Region. It lies 45 kilometers south of and 130 kilometers south of . It has a total land area of 4,364.72 square kilometers or 436,472 hectares representing 1.5 % of the total land area of the country and 16% of the MIMAROPA Region. There are two congressional districts, 426 barangays, 14 municipalities and one component city. is a first class province based on income classification.

Latest population data was posted at 767,465, with density of 176 persons per square kilometer and increasing at annual growth rate of 1.06 percent (Projection based on NSO, 2010 Oriental Mindoro Census of Population). population per CBMS survey in 2008 numbered to 48,105 with seven ethnic groups comprising of the Iraya, Alangan, Buhid, Bangon, Hanunuo, Tadyawan and the Tau‐Buhid

The strength of Oriental Mindoro lies in its physical attributes and natural resources with its favorable climate, large areas for agriculture, and potential tourism sites. The province continues to thrive under an agricultural economy producing significant surpluses of , banana and calamansi, accounting for most of the production in the MIMAROPA region. It is considered a major source of food in the region, as well as in and .

In spite of the province’s comparative advantage, poverty continues to be one of the major issues being addressed by the Provincial Government. Among the few manifestations of extreme poverty is the current state of environmental degradation and resource depletion. In order to achieve productivity and even earn a minimum income, people resort to overexploitation of land, forests and marine resources. Encroachment in the upland areas, wood charcoal production, large and small‐scale mining, and poor management of agricultural areas are already exhibiting long‐term environmental effects ranging from flooding to soil degradation which is compounded by climate change.

Statistics substantiates these claims as revealed in the trend of poverty incidence. Based on NSCB 2006 Philippine Poverty Statistics, Oriental Mindoro ranked 12th among the poorest provinces in the country. While figures posted a decline in the poverty incidence among families in the province from 34.2 percent in 2006 to 26 percent in 2009, NSCB attributes the positive results to the DSWD conditional cash transfer or Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino, salary increase of government employees following the Salary Standardization Law and that the province has been spared from typhoons and other forms of calamities during that period. The 2008 CBMS survey further corroborates the NSCB estimates. Results showed that Oriental Mindoro still had a much higher proportion of population below poverty threshold with 64.1 percent as against the national data of 26.5 percent.

Provincial Government of Oriental Mindoro Page 1

An analysis of the province’s development interventions in the past indicates that implemented strategies have been inadequate to substantially arrest poverty and sustain development as programs and projects are divergent and fragmented to create the necessary impact owing to the piecemeal and staggered approach in implementation. Programs are not owned by the community as they were identified based on the agency‐perceived client needs and not on the actual/real needs of the people. Further, program success is measured in terms of accomplishment vis‐à‐vis agency targets and fund utilization, and not in terms of impact or to the greater cause of alleviating poverty.

The Paradigm Shift

In the effort to substantially arrest poverty and sustain development initiatives in the province, the Provincial Government of Oriental Mindoro has embarked on the Strategic Intervention and Community‐Focused Action towards Development (SICAD). This is the poverty‐response mechanism and an action‐oriented strategy that synchronizes the implementation of development programs of the Provincial Government, attached agencies of the National Government including other convergence initiatives, and the private sector. This is basically a provincial initiative in partnership with other levels of government, non‐government organizations and communities launched on August 25, 2011 in the municipality of .

SICAD upholds and advances demand‐driven and result‐oriented delivery of services to the communities. The strategy revolutionizes the fragmented, piecemeal and unsustainable approach of implementing programs and projects, bringing about interventions that are based on the actual/real needs of the community, thus facilitating program ownership in the process. Participatory management likewise develops a sense of ownership among community members.

SICAD has three major component strategies focusing on three levels of community poor to facilitate corresponding interventions in alleviating poverty:

 Protective and Preventive interventions for the survival/ultra‐poor, which focus on the protection of human life and protection of environment through social protection, food production, family‐development program, and health care benefits  Transformative and Integrative interventions for the subsistence/middle and community poor, which involve paradigm shift and character building through education‐psycho‐social integrity, capacity building, social capital building and community‐driven approach.  Promotive and Prosperative interventions for the self‐sufficient/entrepreneurial and active poor, focusing on entrepreneurship, wealth creation, and sustainable livelihood.

SICAD converges and aligns the resources and competencies of the stakeholders by creating the necessary mechanisms, including structure and systems, that can push for tripartite (GO‐NGO‐PS/PO) cooperation in an area. Under Executive Order No. 22 dated March 2011, all instrumentalities under the Provincial Government and relevant agencies of the national government operating in the province have been mandated to pool their resources to provide corresponding interventions under SICAD.

Provincial Government of Oriental Mindoro Page 2

This also includes the convergence initiatives at the national and regional levels, from the Social Protection Support Initiatives of DOH, DSWD, and PhilHealth; the National Convergence Initiative of DA, DAR, and DENR; and the Generating Resources of Agencies for Community Enterprise of DTI, DOLE, TESDA, DA, and DOST. Likewise, NGOs and other institutions were also tapped to deliver strategic interventions, namely, the Conservation International ‐ , PATH Foundation Philippines, Inc., USAID, Team Mission ‐ Philippines, Inc., Malampaya Foundation, Inc., Mangyan Tribal Church Association, Mangyan Mission, Mangyan Kalakbay Mission; Saklaw Foundation, Inc., Mary Help of Christian School, Philippine Council for Lay Mission; Gawad‐; and even the international development community, particularly the Embassy of Canada.

Interfacing CBMS and MDGs with SICAD

Pre‐requisite to the development processes undertaken in the community is an analysis of the situation in the area. SICAD utilizes the Community‐Based Monitoring System (CBMS) results in identifying the problems to be addressed. The CBMS results are validated with the community to determine the appropriate interventions. Focused targeting of beneficiaries is made and customized programs/projects and services are implemented and delivered to them.

SICAD addresses the CBMS concerns by employing the three approaches (protective, transformative, and promotive) to poverty issues ranging from health and nutrition, housing, water and sanitation, basic education, income and livelihood, and peace and order. It focuses on improving community access to resources and government services, and sustainable management of resources through collaboration of various sectors.

A critical phase of the SICAD development process is the continuous and regular evaluation of programs and projects in communities resulting from convergence. The CBMS results, in this case, become the baseline information in measuring the impact of development interventions under this convergent approach.

SICAD‐ Initiated Interventions in Meeting the Millennium Development Goals

GO‐NGO‐PO cooperation has become an urgent imperative in Oriental Mindoro when it comes to the resolution of environmental concerns. Partnerships among issue‐based interventions on food security, climate change, gender responsiveness, HIV/AIDS prevention, disaster mitigation and resource governance are all within the context of achieving the MDGs by the province. SICAD initiatives include:

 SICAD Partners Forum – A pledging session was conducted on November 15, 2011 to convene various stakeholders and establish awareness of SICAD, explore their possible support for its initiatives, and generate substantial pledges of financial contributions and relevant technical assistance.

Provincial Government of Oriental Mindoro Page 3

 Enhancement of Oriental Mindoro Land Use and Development Management for Climate Change Adaptation in – The overall objective of the program is to ensure the adaptive and resilient capacity of local government units (provincial and municipal/barangay) and their constituents in managing measures for climate change in an integrated and holistic manner in their localities’ ecosystems particularly along coastal areas in the Verde Island Passage. Mainstreaming of climate change adaptation, disaster risk reduction, conflict transformation and gender concerns in the preparation of Oriental Mindoro’s Provincial Development and Physical Framework Plan and Comprehensive Land Use Plan is being pursued.

 Climate Change Adaptation – Income Diversification. This is a direction in poverty reduction through livelihood enhancement, goal of which is to address the twin issues of poverty and environmental degradation, to be holistically handled through partnership over the long‐term. The project’s approach to poverty reduction is “to improve natural resource management (NRM) ‐ based livelihood from a single to multiple livelihood activities/enterprises” as the community advances in its human and natural ecosystem wellbeing.

 Climate Change Adaptation ‐ Building Actors and Leaders for Advancing Community Excellence and Development (BALANCED)‐Population, Health, Environment (PHE). Project goal is to build the leadership and implementation capacities of government and stakeholders to respond in an integrated manner to interrelated population, health and marine environmental issues. Key activities include strengthening of the Marine Protected Area and Bantay Dagat Network, and fisheries management.

 Sustainable Economic Development of Alternative Livelihood for affected small‐scale miners of . The Canadian International Development Agency has agreed to support two project components, the development of a Mangrove Eco‐Park and the development of a Mangyan Crafts. SICAD received a competitive Canadian Fund for Local Initiatives grant amounting to 19,224.00 CAD with agreed local counterpart funding of at least 6,127.00 CAD.

 Integrated Research and Development Enhancement Program (ICREDEP) – Kasaganaan sa Niyugan ay Kaunlaran ng Bayan (KAANIB). The program is aimed at testing the adoption and sustainability of poverty reduction strategies demonstrated to increase farm income and enhance food security in coconut farming communities. Program components include diversification of coconut‐based high value products, crop diversification thru intercropping, livestock integration, and coconut nursery establishment and planting. ICREDEP sites include San Teodoro, , Socorro, Pola, and Roxas. Five additional sites identified under KAANIB include Gloria, , Bulalacao, and Victoria and another coconut area in San Teodoro.

 Local and Regional Economic Development (LRED). This is a participatory and action‐oriented planning and implementation process by which public and private stakeholders work together to improve conditions for economic growth and employment in a locality. Its objective is to promote the emergence of vibrant and ecologically sustainable local economies, which will

Provincial Government of Oriental Mindoro Page 4

trigger pro‐poor growth and ultimately, better living conditions for the majority of the population. This is in partnership with the LGU and the Department of Trade and Industry.

 Program for the Indigenous Peoples o Awarding of Assistance from the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP) for the Delineation and Titling of Ancestral Domain Claims worth P564,414 . Alangan of Naujan and Baco (P230,615) . Hanunuo of Bulalacao and (P233,799) . Tadyawan of Socorro, and Gloria (P100,000) o One‐Stop‐Shop Mobile Registration for the Indigenous People. This aims to facilitate access to birth registration services to ensure availment of other social services (Pantawid ng Pamilyang Pilipino, PhilHealth and other services). The initiative is in partnership with local government units (municipal and barangay), Team Mission‐ Philippines, Inc., National Statistics Office, and the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples o Consultation among IPs, NCIP, LGU, and the private sector re: ancestral domain

 Oriental Mindoro Toll Packaging Center. The Provincial Government through the newly created department, Provincial Tourism, Investment and Enterprise Development Office in partnership with Department of Trade and Industry, Department of Science and Technology (Oriental Mindoro S&T Center), and the City Government of has established the project to provide extensive product development and packaging services to micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs).

 Kapitolyo para sa Mamamayan. Integration and delivery of the Provincial Government programs and services: o Kapitolyo para sa Mamamayan Medical‐Dental Mission, Soup Kitchen, PhilHealth card distribution and enrollment, animal treatment and vaccination, legal services, assessment and tax collection, distribution of books and sports paraphernalia o Deployment of PGOM‐funded teachers under the Programang Pang‐Edukasyon sa Kalibliban o Construction of toilet bowls and water system o Sustainable livelihood / financial assistance o Capacity‐building

Critical steps have to be undertaken to truly attain a responsive and sustainable local development. It is only when we pursue sustainable and effective partnerships and shifts in paradigm can we achieve such. Creating an enabling environment to realize the MDG targets is not the sole responsibility of the government. The challenge is for the government, non‐government and private sector/civil society to break old biases, build on each other’s strengths and rally round each other’s weaknesses. It has to be the business of all sectors.

Provincial Government of Oriental Mindoro Page 5