A senior official of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) on Thursday (July 17) called for the need to scale up the adoption of Anticipatory Action (AA) in the social protection systems in the country.

Undersecretary for Disaster Response Management Group (DRMG) Diana Rose Cajipe said legislative frameworks such as the Philippine Climate Change Act of 2009 and the Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Act of 2010 have paved the way for a strategic shift towards anticipatory approaches like Anticipatory Action or AA.

“By preemptively deploying resources ahead of forecast shocks, AA not only protects lives and livelihoods but also mitigates the need for extensive humanitarian aid in the aftermath of disasters,” Undersecretary Cajipe said in her keynote message at the National Anticipatory Action Learning Summit and Culminating Activity held in Quezon City.

During the event organized by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (UN-FAO), Undersecretary Cajipe explained that the pilot implementation of the AA in selected areas around the country made significant strides to help communities in mitigating the impacts of climate change.

One of the examples the DSWD official mentioned was the activation of the drought AA in Echague, Isabela through targeted multi-purpose cash assistance and conditional cash transfers for farmers.

“These interventions have not only safeguarded livelihoods but have also reinforced the resilience of our communities against climate-induced challenges,” Usec. Cajipe pointed out.

The DSWD and the UN-FAO have been closely collaborating to utilize AA as one of the strategies to proactively support and reach vulnerable populations ahead of forecast shocks.

The summit aimed to strengthen capacities and scale-up AA within the European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (ECHO) Pilot Programmatic Partnership (PPP).

The summit discussions focused on achievements of the ECHO PPP program in the Philippines, including best practices, challenges encountered in various thematic areas, and lessons learned from the country’s experience.

The UN-FAO collaborates with the DSWD, National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC), Department of Science and Technology’s (DOST) Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA), and local government units (LGUs) in the regions of Cagayan Valley, Bicol, and Caraga.

Joint FAO-led and/or DSWD pilot AA programs have been established in Isabela province, in the Cagayan Valley Region for drought AA; Surigao del Norte province in Caraga Region, and Cotabato province in SOCCSKSARGEN for flood AA.

DSWD Special Assistant to the Secretary (SAS) for Innovations Marcelo Nicomedes Castillo and FAO Representative in the Philippines Dr. Lionel Dabbadie were also present in the event.

Representatives of various government agencies who participated in the summit include the NDRRMC Office of Civil Defense (OCD), PAGASA, Philippine Space Agency (PhilSA), Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), Department of Budget and Management (DBM), Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) ministries (MSSD, MAFAR, MILG, BPDA), and LGUs from pilot areas (Echague, Isabela; Bacuag and Guigaquit, Surigao del Norte; Midsayap and Pigcawayan, North Cotabato). #