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Building Plaridel from the Ground Up:A Guide for the Municipal Government for Dealing with Housing and Shelter for the Poor

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Maira Avila, Bronwyn Jarvis and Lucia Scodanibbio School of Community and Regional Planning • University of British Columbia • August 31, 2008

Acknowledgements We gratefully acknowledge the support, participation and contribution of all of those who made this research possible. First and foremost, we are indebted to Professor Leonora C. Angeles for offering this course and providing invaluable guidance. We would especially like to thank Mayor Tessie Vistan for her trust and support. We are grateful to the residents of Plaridel, municipal staff, colleagues, interviewees, and to all our Plarideleno friends who received our group with so much generosity, kindness and hospitality. We thank Teresa Viernes from the Municipal Social and Welfare Development Office, Mae Caralde from the Mayor’s Office, Lori Capiral of the Engineering Office, Renato Rivero from the MENRO, Councilor Chippy, Councilor Sheila Enriquez, Reynaldo Alvaro of Municipal Development and Planning Office, Celestino Pingol of Engineering, Muncipal Assessor Arsenio Pascua, Mel Magat, Mila, Roland, and Gilbert Angeles. We thank all Barangay Captains, officers and staff at barangays Banga 1 and 2, Tabang, Sto. Nino, Poblacion, San Jose, Parulan and Culianin. We thank Letty Garcia, Linda Samson, the Philippines’ National Police, Dr. Macario M. Manicad Jr, Arlene Pascual, PAG-ASA Youth Association, and the SK Youth Group. We especially thank Father Dennis Espejo and all others at St. James Church; and Shirley S. Acebedo who assisted with translations, guided us around Plaridel and enriched this research with valuable insights. We also thank James, Ivy, Alexa and Ner for their support, and Jamie and Giselle Vistan for their hospitality. We are grateful to the School of Community and Regional Planning and the University of British Columbia for supporting this course and providing partial funding. We also thank the support of our colleagues Sean Tynan, Danielle Blond, Johanna Mazur, Iona To, Jody Kliffer, Sawngjai Dear Manityakul, Hanane Benzidane, Raquel Trinidad and Manjit Chand, who shared with us this experience. And we thank all of those who dedicated their valuable time to support us in the research process and to make our experience in the Philippines truly unforgettable.

Building Plaridel from the Ground Up

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About the Authors Lucia Scodanibbio is a South African-Italian national who completed her Bachelors in environmental science and ecology at the University of Cape Town before coming to UBC to do her MSc Planning major in Ecological and Natural Resource Management. Her special research interest is in water resources management and stakeholder participation.

Bronwyn Jarvis is a MA Planning candidate at the School of Community and Regional Planning at the University of British Columbia. Her ongoing research interests include planning for sustainable communities, participatory planning and urban design, and participatory governance.

Maíra Ávila is a Brazilian citizen and has been living in Canada for the past eight years. Maíra studied Economics and works as a graduate research assistant for the “New Public Consortia for Metropolitan Governance Project” in Brazil, based at the Centre for Human Settlements at the University of British Columbia. Maíra is now entering her second year in the masters program at the School of Community and Regional Planning where her main interests include social planning, urban poverty, gender inequality and community development.

Preface

THE PLARIDEL PLANNING STUDIO COURSE

This report is a product of a four-week Planning Studio Course offered in the Summer of 2008 and conducted as a partnership between the Municipality of Plaridel in Bulacan, Philippines and the School of Community and Regional Planning at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada. The course allowed students to combine academic work and hands-on development planning work within a municipal government setting, in an international context. The course was structured as a community service learning experience with the purpose of promoting mutual learning around planning processes for municipal staff and students.

The Plaridel Planning Studio course was the second field course offered to planning students at the University of British Columbia to be held in the Philippines. In the summer of 2007 Professor Leonora C. Angeles invited masters students in the School of Community and Regional Planning to participate in a similar course conducted in Naga City. The outcomes of this pilot course were very successful and its popularity among students encouraged Dr. Angeles to organize a similar course, this time based in her home town of Plaridel.

Throughout four weeks in Plaridel students were assigned to work on five major areas of concern as identified by the municipality. Prior to the students’ arrival in the Philippines the course instructor worked closely with the Municipal Mayor and staff in identifying critical areas of concern to be tackled by students. The areas identified were the following: solid waste management, transportation and land use planning, sustainable rural livelihoods and business promotion, youth development planning and dealing with informal settlements and social housing for the poor, which is the focus of this study.

GOALS AND OBJECTIVES OF THE COURSE

The main goal of this course was to provide an opportunity for the Municipality of Plaridel and planning students to learn from each other and work together to investigate possible ways of enhancing planning processes in the region. It was expected that students would:

Understand and appreciate the real world of planning challenges and government-society interactions in a typical municipality in a developing country;

Provide meaningful inputs to the municipal planning processes and implementation plans in the coming years;

Create a new generation of international, community development, and municipal planners who bring their thoughtful analytical skills into creative and practical planning solutions;

Bring lessons from Plaridel in particular and the Philippines in general to places, sites and cultures where their planning work might take them.

GOALS AND OBJECTIVES OF THIS REPORT

This report seeks to provide direction and contribute to the Municipality of Plaridel’s efforts in dealing with housing and shelter for the poor. It is hoped that the information contained here will be useful to guide the municipality in developing a housing planning strategy for dealing with its current needs, and that it will contribute to a better understanding of Plaridel’s opportunities and barriers in dealing with housing for the poor. The report focuses on exploring and categorizing potential short, medium and long-term steps that are both objective and attainable given Plaridel’s current situation, while it presents a detailed list of the resources and actions necessary to accomplish these steps. The report also covers possible scenarios and alternatives for dealing with housing.

RESEARCHERS’ GOALS

We believe that this was a unique opportunity for us, as students, to be able to apply our planning skills and learn from the experience of working closely with municipal officials, staff, organizations and community members in an international context. It was a truly enriching experience that exposed us to numerous rewarding situations, but also to various challenges, and having the support of our professor and colleagues throughout the research process was invaluable. Realizing our own limitations, we tried not to focus on the unfeasible, but instead on developing realistic, action-oriented recommendations and future steps that we hope will contribute to the municipal government’s efforts in improving the condition of current settlements and ensuring a more prosperous future not only for the urban poor but for all Plaridelenos.

Lucia Scodanibbio, Bronwyn Jarvis and Maíra Avila

Executive Summary The Municipality of Plaridel is facing increasing demands as it experiences a process of rapid urbanization. Having to deliver basic services to a growing and diverse population, dealing with environmental problems, mobilizing financial resources, managing land use and transportation, and finding solutions to urban poverty are some among the various challenges Plaridel is striving to deal with.

The purpose of this report is to assist the municipal government in identifying possible avenues to respond to some of these challenges; specifically, this report outlines different possibilities for dealing with informal settlements and housing for the poor in Plaridel. The aim of the research is to explore the following question:

How can the municipality of Plaridel deal with informal settlements and its social housing needs as it grows and transitions to an agro-industrial city?

Throughout the relatively short period under which this study was conducted the following key elements were identified with respect to the housing situation in Plaridel:

1. SUMMARY OF STRENGTHS, WEAKNESSES, OPPORTUNITIES AND THREATS (SWOT ANALYSIS):

Strengths Weaknesses Opportunities Threats

Committed leadership

Enabling policy and legislative frameworks

Strong decentralized structure

Existing initiatives

Community engagement

Culture of cooperation & volunteerism

Vibrant communities

Engaged youth

Absence of housing planning initiatives

Absence of a municipal housing board

Lack of funds Lack of data Political clashes Vulnerability of the

poor Resistance to

change Inefficiencies of

larger administrative system

Potentially: crime, drugs, prostitution

Lack of municipal coordination

Resources available from higher levels of government and other organizations

Some land still available Land use planning schemes

are currently in the process of being formulated

Potential employment opportunities through housing

Re-directing resources: many residents already pay rent in informal market

Ability to explore cooperation schemes

Ability to expand savings programs

Willingness to learn Learning from local

experiences Potential partnerships

Budget Vulnerability to

regional and global forces

Future political changes

Patriarchal relations

In-migration from other municipalities

Land conversion and food security

Natural disasters


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In view of these findings, the following recommendations are suggested:

2. SUMMARY OF RECOMMENDATIONS:

Summary of Recommendations

SHORT TERM Allocate responsibility over housing issues

Delegate a person within municipal staff/officers to oversee housing issues in the short-term

Hire a student intern skilled at fundraising and grant proposal writing

Address of continue addressing population’s basic needs Invest in capacity building and development of skills within the municipality Invest in social preparation Set-up partnerships with public, private and non-profit organizations Conduct a survey and land inventory Update the Community Development and Land Use Plan Set-up a housing board

MEDIUM TERM Solidify the housing board and partnerships Formulate a local housing program Conduct a feasibility study of Agnaya Resettle those at risk Address land titling issue

LONG TERM Build upon and solidify short and medium term accomplishments Actively engage in regional and national strategies

The findings presented here should be open for discussion and used as a basis for further research. It is hoped, however, that this report will assist the municipal government in creating the necessary conditions for the promotion and development of adequate housing for the poor and that through a combination of actions, substantial positive changes will be achieved to ensure a healthier future for Plaridel and its residents.

Table of Contents 3. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ........................................................................................................... 1 4. ABOUT THE AUTHORS ............................................................................................................ 2 5. PREFACE .............................................................................................................................. 3 6. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ........................................................................................................... 4 7. PART I .................................................................................................................................. 8

INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................................... 8 BACKGROUND AND PURPOSES .................................................................................................... 8

METHODOLOGY ...................................................................................................................... 9 POTENTIAL LIMITATIONS .................................................................................................... 10

GUIDING PRINCIPLES ................................................................................................................ 11 CONTEXT ................................................................................................................................. 13

THE MUNICIPALITY OF PLARIDEL, BULACAN ........................................................................... 13 CURRENT HOUSING SITUATION IN PLARIDEL ...................................................................... 14 THE ROLE OF THE BARANGAY ........................................................................................... 14

SOCIAL/ECONOMIC/PHYSICAL PROFILE ................................................................................. 15 SAVINGS & LOANS ................................................................................................................ 17 TENURE RELATIONSHIPS IN PLARIDEL .................................................................................... 18

OCCUPATION OF PUBLIC LAND ........................................................................................... 18 OCCUPATION OF PRIVATE LAND ......................................................................................... 19 INFORMAL/INFORMAL TRANSACTIONS ................................................................................. 20 PRICING ........................................................................................................................... 20

PLANNING EFFORTS TO DATE ............................................................................................... 21 LEGAL AND POLICY FRAMEWORK .......................................................................................... 23

LOCAL GOVERNMENT CODE .............................................................................................. 23 URBAN DEVELOPMENT AND HOUSING ACT ......................................................................... 23 LOCAL HOUSING BOARD ACT ............................................................................................ 24 MUNICIPAL POLICY AND GAPS ........................................................................................... 25

8. PART II ............................................................................................................................... 27 HOUSING FOR THE POOR IN PLARIDEL: PERSPECTIVES AND POSSIBILITIES ...................................... 27

HOW COULD IT GET WORSE? ................................................................................................... 27 SCENARIO 1 – IF NOTHING IS DONE ....................................................................................... 27

REPERCUSSIONS OF POLICY ............................................................................................. 27 SECTION 2 – IF THINGS ARE DONE “THE WRONG WAY” .......................................................... 27

CASE STUDY: SOUTH AFRICA ............................................................................................ 27 DEMOLISHING SETTLEMENTS WITHOUT COMPENSATION ...................................................... 28 TOP-DOWN PUBLIC SOCIAL HOUSING SCHEMES ................................................................... 28 PRIVILEGING PUBLIC, PRIVATE AND NGO ACTORS OVER CIVIL ACTORS ................................ 29 EXCLUDING THE MARGINAL ................................................................................................ 29 EXPLOITATION OF THE SYSTEM .......................................................................................... 30 CASE STUDY: SITIO BACO’OD............................................................................................ 30 USING ONE-PROGRAM FITS ALL .......................................................................................... 31 CASE STUDY: COOPERATIVES IN INDIA .............................................................................. 31

HOW CAN IT GET BETTER? CASE STUDIES AND POLICY OPTIONS ................................................ 32 I. LEARNING FROM CASE STUDIES ......................................................................................... 32

CASE STUDY: SAVE THE MARIKINA RIVER .......................................................................... 32


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CASE STUDY: NAGA CITY .................................................................................................. 33 CASE STUDY: HOUSING FINANCE IN INDIA .......................................................................... 35 CASE STUDY: THE HOMELESS PEOPLE’S FEDERATION OF THE PHILIPPINES ......................... 36

II. POLICY OPTIONS .............................................................................................................. 37 FINANCING: ...................................................................................................................... 37 OBTAINING LAND............................................................................................................... 39 OWNERSHIP STRUCTURES................................................................................................. 40 FORM AND CONSTRUCTION OF STRUCTURES AND INFRASTRUCTURE .................................... 43 CASE STUDY – MAHILA MILAN ........................................................................................... 44 PREVENTATIVE SQUATTER METHODS ................................................................................. 44 CREATING JOBS THROUGH IS PROGRAMS .......................................................................... 45

9. PART III .............................................................................................................................. 48 DISCUSSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS ........................................................................................... 48

SUMMARY OF FINDINGS: KEY FACTORS INFLUENCING THE CURRENT SITUATION ....................... 48 RECOMMENDATIONS AND RESOURCES .................................................................................. 51

SHORT-TERM ACTIONS ...................................................................................................... 51 MEDIUM-TERM ACTIONS .................................................................................................... 53 LONG-TERM ACTIONS ........................................................................................................ 54 CASES IN PLARIDEL .......................................................................................................... 54 RAILWAY TRACK ............................................................................................................... 55 IRRIGATIONAL CANAL ........................................................................................................ 55 ANGAT RIVER ................................................................................................................... 56

CONCLUSIONS .......................................................................................................................... 58 THINKING OF SUSTAINABILITY ............................................................................................ 58

10. PART IV .............................................................................................................................. 60 APPENDIX: RESOURCES ................................................................................................................ 60

1. HOW CAN THE MUNICIPALITY ESTABLISH A LOCAL HOUSING BOARD? ................................... 60 2. DIRECTIONS FOR THE MUNICIPALITY OF PLARIDEL’S COMPREHENSIVE LAND USE PLAN ....... 61 3. POTENTIAL PARTNERS AND AVAILABLE RESOURCES .......................................................... 62

PUBLIC BODIES ................................................................................................................. 62 POTENTIAL PRIVATE PARTNERS ......................................................................................... 64 POTENTIAL NOT-FOR-PROFIT PARTNERS ............................................................................ 66

4. UDHA COMPLIANCE CHECKLIST ....................................................................................... 69 5. LIST OF HOUSING PROJECTS CONDUCTED BY LOCAL GOVERNMENT UNITS IN THE PHILIPPINES75 6. LIST OF HOUSING PROGRAMS PROMOTED BY NGOS IN THE PHILIPPINES ............................ 78 7. LIST OF INTERVIEWS, FOCUS GROUPS AND FIELD VISITS CONDUCTED ................................ 79

11. REFERENCES ...................................................................................................................... 81

Part I Introduction

Background and Purposes

As with any species, all human beings have the right to life and the right to have a place to live on Earth. The reality faced by most inhabitants of developing countries, however, is characterized by precarious living conditions and deprivation from the fulfilment of basic needs. United Nations estimates suggest that one-sixth of the world’s population, or nearly one billion people, currently reside in slums (United Nations, 2007). The following quote by Alan Gilbert (2007) further illustrates the extent of the problem:

“According to the UN’s figures (...), most urban Africans, Asians and Latin Americans live in slums. UN-Habitat (2003a: 15) estimates that 72% of urban dwellers in sub-Saharan Africa live in slums and 58% of those in South-Central Asia. Even Latin Americans cannot escape this fate because, seemingly, ‘about two-thirds of the population of Mexico City live in what might be called a slum’ (ibid.: xxix). Even more alarmingly, UN-Habitat (2003a: 81) estimates that, in 2001, 99.4% of the urban population of Ethiopia lived in slums and 98.5% of those in Afghanistan! In the urban areas of virtually all of the 49 least developed countries of the world, the majority lived in slums” (2007: 407).

Current global trends demonstrate that measures to ensure adequate housing for all have been largely unsuccessful. Economic globalization and structural adjustment measures that promote privatization, deregularization, and liberalization of markets across the globe have led to increased social disparity and inequality in the distribution of wealth and resources (Durand-Lasserve 2006). An increasing majority of people end up excluded from formal markets, with no alternative but to resort to informal land and housing markets. The expansion of informal settlements seems inevitable under the currently dominant economic paradigm.

The United Nations recognizes that “as towns and cities grow at unprecedented rates setting the social, political, cultural and environmental trends of the world, sustainable

urbanisation is one of the most pressing challenges facing the global community in the 21st century” (UN Habitat: The Challenge). As a result, rapid urbanization which is usually accompanied by unplanned development and growth leads to an entangled combination of social, environmental and economic challenges that affect the poor, vulnerable and underprivileged most severely.

The challenges faced by the Municipality of Plaridel are symptomatic of this context. Plaridel is located in the province of Bulacan, adjacent to the Greater Metropolitan Manila. The rapid urbanization of Manila has extended into neighboring municipalities. Many individuals, particularly those with modest income who cannot afford the high cost of living in Manila, choose to live in Plaridel and commute to work in the urban centre. This has generated increasing demand for housing in Plaridel in the past few years and, consequently, to the growth of inadequate and irregular settlements. As explained by Berner:

“Rural-urban migrants are looking for opportunities, or for 'greener pastures' as some of them quite paradoxically put it. Many fail and either return to the provinces or become part of the growing numbers of homeless pushcart dwellers and street people. Many more, however, manage to get one of the low-paid occupations which the metropolis so amply provides, and join the ranks of the so-called urban poor.” (Berner 2000, p. 554)

The pressures created in Plaridel’s transition from a traditional rural region into an industrialized urban periphery have profound ramifications for the social, economic and environmental dynamics of the municipality. For example, the increased rate of land conversion in response to industrialization and land speculation has altered the patterns of agricultural practice in Plaridel. A large share of individuals who have traditionally been engaged in farming, especially rice production, have had to seek alternative livelihoods and often join the informal labour market where lack of job security leads to vulnerability.

At the same time, the process of governmental decentralization that has taken place since the enactment of the Philippines’ Local Government Code in 1991 has implied that a much larger share of responsibilities and autonomy is now in the hands of the municipal government. Not only in the Philippines but in many regions of the world municipalities have struggled to respond more rapidly to the demands generated by


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urbanization and growth. Fortunately, Plaridel has a strong municipal government who is committed to improving the living conditions of its residents, as demonstrated by the priorities contained in the government’s agenda, and in the actions, efforts and successes achieved to date. But despite the government’s best efforts to manage Plaridel’s transition to an agro-industrial city, the pace at which municipal initiatives are implemented often doesn’t match the pace at which new demands emerge.

In the case of housing for the poor, Plaridel has not yet developed and institutionalized an appropriate structure for dealing with the issue. So far the municipality’s housing initiatives have been sporadic, not reflecting an integrated strategy, and generating little impact on the overall housing situation in Plaridel. To achieve meaningful change, the government needs to view and approach the problem in a systematic way.

Fortunately Plaridel’s municipal government counts on a solid and committed team of individuals who are seeking answers to all of these challenges. As Plaridel experiences rapid growth and moves towards its vision of becoming an agro-industrial city, a crucial opportunity is presented to establish more concrete plans of action and specific priorities in dealing with housing for the poor. Moreover, a Local Housing Board Act (2008) was recently enacted, requiring all municipal bodies to set up a Local Housing Board whose responsibility lies exclusively in overseeing housing issues at the local level.

Given this context, the purpose of this report is to assist the municipal government in creating the necessary conditions for the promotion and development of adequate housing for the poor, so that through a combination of actions, substantial positive changes will be achieved in the long-run. It is hoped that the inputs presented here will be useful in providing direction for Plaridel’s municipal development plan in the next three to five years.

A NOTE ABOUT TERMINOLOGY

The definition of “informal settlement” can vary depending on the context. This report uses the definition suggested by the United Nations:

Informal settlements are “i) residential areas where a group of housing units have been constructed on land to

which the occupant have no legal claim, or which they occupy illegally; ii), unplanned settlements and areas where housing is not in compliance with current planning and building regulations (unauthorized housing).” (United Nations, 2001:121-122).

Many other terms such as unplanned settlements, squatter settlements, marginal settlements, irregular settlements, unconventional dwellings, non-permanent structures, inadequate housing, slums, and housing not in compliance, are also often used to refer to informal settlements (WHO, 2003). These terms are used alternately throughout the report.

Methodology

The research was conducted by three students with diverse backgrounds in the fields of international development, economics, ecology and environmental sciences. Students were required to conduct background research on their specific topic prior to arriving to the Philippines and attended a series of lectures on Filipino history and culture in order to gain familiarity with the contextual background.

The first week of work in the Philippines focused on exposing students to the day-to-day reality of Plaridel through lectures, guided group walking tours, field visits and group interviews. Time was also dedicated to group discussions and group-based research, and to establishing initial contacts with municipal officers, staff and community groups. The research design was determined once students gained a broader understanding of the context and in particular of the needs of the municipality.

Given this initial appraisal of the circumstances and current needs of the Municipality and its residents, as well as the possibilities and constraints involved in this work, the following research question was used to guide this study:

How can the municipality of Plaridel deal with informal settlements and its social

housing needs as it grows and transitions to an agro-industrial city?


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The research methodology consisted of extensive documentation review, in-depth interviews and focus groups with local residents, community groups, municipal staff and other key stakeholders, as well as site visits and visual documentation (pictures). Because the language barrier can represent a significant constraint in cross-cultural research, a local resident accompanied the group and was available during all interviews, focus groups and conversations to translate from Tagalog to English when necessary. Most residents of Plaridel that our group interacted with had basic English comprehension and some were fluent, which facilitated the process.

A total of 22 interviews and focus groups were conducted, in addition to 16 site visits to settlements, housing projects, municipal offices, cooperative groups, and provincial agencies. Direct observation, interviews and focus groups allowed for the collection of primary data, which were complemented with secondary data from sources such as previous community development plans, community-based surveys, municipal reports, maps, and other related documentation obtained from the municipality, barangays and residents. A summary of the interviews, focus groups and site visits is available in the Appendices.

Many of informal settlers with whom we conducted interviews and focus groups were concerned that their well-being could be compromised if they shared information which reflected poorly on those in a position of privilege. To ensure that these informants felt comfortable to share all of their expertise, we assured them that their identities would be kept confidential. To safeguard this confidentiality we never refer to the name of informants or time of interviews in the body of this report, and only sometimes include the location of interviews.

Given the significant time constraint on our research - one month of field work – we were acutely aware of the need to manage that time efficiently and effectively. The most useful product we felt we could produce in that time was a manual containing a variety of resources and a step-by-step timeline of tangible actions that the municipality can undertake in the short, medium, and long-term. As a result, the main purpose of this report is not to fill in data gaps, but instead focuses on identifying means for improving the government’s efficiency in approaching the problem of informal settlements.

Potential Limitations

The immersion of students within the setting being studied enabled for the collection of reliable data, in particular qualitative data through direct observation, personal interviews and focus groups. However, this data is very specific and needs to be complemented with additional sources in future. A main constraint was the unavailability of any in-depth, consistent and reliable studies or data sources covering the social, economic, and physical aspects of Plaridel over time and in a comprehensive manner. The most detailed available data sources, such as the Community Development and Land Use Plan, cover a limited timespan and often do not provide a clear explanation of how research integrity was ensured. Additional secondary data, which includes previous studies conducted by planning students from the University of the Philippines, as well as other quantitative assessments, also often lacked consistency and a clear description of the data collection methods. Municipal officials expressed a concern with the lack of municipal research activities and data collection in the past, which compromises their ability to draw on such past events or trends for the development of effective policies and programs.

Other possible limitations of the methodology are related to the international content of this course and include, as mentioned previously, potential language and cross-cultural barriers, lack of in-depth familiarity with the context, history and dynamics of place, as well as the lack of time to collect and process data. Furthermore, the participatory content of this research was limited as a result of the conditions under which it was conducted: students worked under the guidance of the municipality and acted as consultants for a relatively short period of time. The information presented here should be open to the scrutiny of municipal officers and staff, and most importantly, of the Plaridel community and residents, so as to verify whether the interpretations and views in fact represent the views of the broader community.

To overcome some of these potential limitations students were required to consult with the instructor on a regular basis and to make use of the reflective learning technique. This technique entailed writing weekly reflection journal entries and sharing them with a group for discussion and feedback. The translator that accompanied the group


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during the interviews, visits and focus groups also provided relevant insights. As a resident of the informal settlements herself, she provided a valuable insider’s view on the issue. In addition, the preliminary findings of this research were presented to the municipal council during an open forum prior to the completion of this report. This allowed municipal officers, staff and community members to comment on the findings and proposed actions.

It is also relevant to mention that much of the learning occurred not through formal interviews, but during informal conversations and through day-to-day experiences that resulted from being immersed in the reality of the municipality, and from experiencing first-hand the routine, interactions and sensations particular to the context. In this sense, hearing people’s perceptions and paying attention to the dynamics of the place, and discussing it informally with local people and with colleagues represented a useful strategy for cross-checking the data and identifying its strengths and limitations.

Guiding Principles

“Sustainable human settlements are those that, inter alia, generate a sense of citizenship and identity, cooperation and dialogue for the common good, and a spirit of voluntarism and civic engagement, where all people are encouraged and have an equal opportunity to participate in decision-making and development.” (Habitat Agenda, 1996: 9)

This report is based on the premise that governments and planners strive to promote effective governance and the development of communities that are inclusive, environmentally sustainable, economically and culturally vibrant, and livable. With this in mind, the following principles were used to guide the research process, and the recommendations presented to the municipality:

SHIFTING THE WAY WE PERCEIVE THE URBAN POOR

The currently dominant economic system based on neoliberal globalization has led to inequitable growth, producing injustice, social segregation, unemployment, illiteracy and substantial disparity of wealth between

human beings. Poverty is therefore a result, rather than a cause, of the prevailing global economic system. However, the urban poor are often perceived erroneously as a cause of the problems facing society today. A shift in the way of thinking about the urban poor that reverts this perception is crucial for ensuring that the capacities and potential of people are not discredited or undermined. It is the people who hold the power to shape their environments and to build the places where they live. They should thus be seen as an asset and not a burden to society, possessing skills and resources that need to be fostered and tapped into, so that they can play an active role in improving their lives.

HOUSING AS A BASIC HUMAN RIGHT

The United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights states that “The human right to adequate housing, which is thus derived from the right to an adequate standard of living, is of central importance for the enjoyment of all economic, social and cultural rights” (1991:1). The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (art 25.1) recognizes the right to adequate housing as a human right to be ensured by governments worldwide. "Within the overall context of an enabling approach, Governments should take appropriate action in order to promote, protect and ensure the full and progressive realization of the right to adequate housing" (paragraph 61).

CONTINUOUS LEARNING

The process of dealing with housing for the poor has to be a continuous one, since changing realities will constantly require changing responses. Therefore, approaches for dealing with housing have to be institutionalized as long-term strategies that build upon the lessons learned throughout the process, and that are continuously adjusted to reflect the needs and demands associated with particular circumstances. Initiatives around housing should not be promoted or perceived as isolated short-term strategies, but rather as steps that complement and are part of a larger context and that in turn often generate long-lasting impacts on individuals’ lives and on the community, be them positive or negative impacts.

THE STATE AS AN ENABLER

With the shift in governments towards decentralisation, also comes a transformation in the government’s responsibilities from provider of services to enabler. This


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entails setting up partnerships with civil and private partners, who in turn take up responsibility for some of the functions previously held by government. In this context, the government recognizes that non-governmental actors often have more strengths in meeting certain needs and providing certain functions, while the state monitors and oversees the processes. As an example, civil society and NGOs are generally better equipped to assist the urban poor in social preparation and community strengthening activities for resettlement.

PROMOTION OF PARTNERSHIPS

“Sustainable human settlements development requires cooperative and complementary actions among interested parties” (Habitat Agenda, 1996: 43)

Besides allowing municipalities to build upon successful strategies and to learn from the lessons of others, partnerships represent an indispensable instrument for opening channels for resources, dialogue and shared learning. Partnerships also open up opportunities for mutual support and for promoting the enhancement of social capital. Partnerships can be established with other levels of governments, non-governmental organizations, community groups, professional associations, with the private sector and other interested stakeholders.

EMPOWERMENT AND PARTICIPATION

As stated in the Vancouver Declaration1, “All persons have the right and the duty to participate, individually and collectively in the elaboration and implementation of policies and programmes of their human settlements” (Vancouver Declaration). Empowerment and participation are necessary ingredients for ensuring the sustainability of any initiative. The continuous dialogue between stakeholders should be promoted through an institutionalized participatory approach. As stated in the Habitat Agenda, “empowering all people, especially those belonging to vulnerable and disadvantaged groups, in particular people living in poverty, to participate equally and effectively in all activities related to human settlements

1 “The Vancouver Declaration consists of sixty-four recommendations for national action around the housing and settlements policy arena. It was approved at the first United Nations conference on human settlements, Habitat I, on June 11th, 1976” (Gorman, 2001: 275).

is the basis for civic engagement and should be facilitated by national authorities” (1996: 5). The failures of processes that do not involve project beneficiaries will be discussed further in the section “How Could it Get Worse?”.

FOCUS ON CONTEXT-SPECIFIC SOLUTIONS

Even though the housing challenges faced by many countries and municipalities around the world are similar, there is no single solution that serves all. In Plaridel’s case different approaches (e.g. resettlement vs. upgrading, different financing mechanisms, types of ownership, partnerships, etc.), will need to be explored for the various informal settlements in the municipality, based on the specific problems, needs, and assets in each context. Efforts should be made to promote “locally available, appropriate, affordable, safe, efficient and environmentally sound construction methods and technologies” (Habitat Agenda, 1996: 12)

REACHING THE POOREST OF THE POOR

Improvement in the quality of life of individuals begins with the fulfillment of basic needs such as food, shelter, clean water, employment, health, education, training, and social security without discrimination (Vancouver Declaration). The poorest of the poor are those most deprived of the means for satisfying these basic needs, and are often excluded from accessing support when it is available. Given these substantial impediments, active efforts and outreach initiatives are necessary to ensure that the least advantaged benefit from programs and actions. Special attention should be paid to ensuring that the specific needs of the most marginalized are taken into account and integrated into any plan of action. Housing strategies should be designed to reduce, rather than reinforce, inequalities.

RESPECT FOR DIVERSITY

Often the needs and interests of children and youth, indigenous people, elderly, women and persons with disabilities are marginalized from programmes and practices. Solutions should respect and incorporate the diverse interests of different people, and efforts should be made to ensure that attention is paid to the needs of different groups. “A human settlement is more than a grouping of people, shelter and work places. Diversity in the characteristics of human settlements reflecting cultural


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and aesthetic values must be respected and encouraged” (Vancouver Declaration). Efforts should be made to ensure non-discrimination based on race, sex, religion, age or social status.

GENDER SENSITIVE APPROACHES

“While cities can offer the prospect of socio-economic freedom to women, the reality is that women are still more likely to be the poorest among the urban poor and, therefore, more vulnerable to adverse socio-economic conditions.” (Tibaijuka, 2002:2).

Women face particular constrains in accessing and controlling resources. While women compose half of the world’s population, they are still largely excluded from formal decision-making structures, and control a negligible proportion of resources as compared to men. On the other hand, women in general bear most of the responsibilities and tasks related to the household. Active efforts should be made to ensure that conditions are in place “for the full integration of women (...) in political, economic and social activities, particularly in the planning and implementation of human settlement proposals and in all the associated activities, on the basis of equal rights” (Vancouver Declaration)

Context

FIGURE 1. MAP OF THE BULACAN PROVINCE

The Municipality of Plaridel, Bulacan

Plaridel is a peri-urban municipality located about 40 kilometres north of Manila, in the heart of the Bulacan Province in Central Luzon, the Philippines (see Figure 1). Plaridel has experienced rapid demographic change, commercial growth and industrialization as a result of urbanization and the process of agrarian transition initiated in the 1960s. The town was in fact a pilot municipality in the implementation of the Philippines’ first Land Reform Program under President Macapagal. Since then, a region that was once known as the “rice granary” of the Philippines has now seen much of its rice lands converted into residential, industrial, and commercial development (CDLUP, 1998). Rapid urbanization, due largely to the town’s proximity to Metro Manila, has profoundly impacted the social, environmental and economic conditions of Plaridel.

The transition from a predominantly rural to urbanized centre is characteristic of many regions surrounding large metropolitan centres in the developing world. While Plaridel seeks to adjust to this changing reality, it has experienced: rapid demographic transition; changing patterns of economic activity; growing urgency of environmental problems including resource depletion and the conversion of prime agricultural lands; and increased inequality and social polarization (CLUP, 2002: 26). These are all problems associated with the current pattern of urban growth, and represent pressing challenges to be dealt with in the coming years, particularly as the municipality strives to become an agro-industrial city.

As expressed in its Community Development and Land Use Plan (2002: 25) - which was developed through a participatory visioning workshop led by the municipal government - the long-term vision of Plaridel is the following:


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“By the year 2012 Plaridel has well-informed, cooperative, active and God-loving

citizenry who are generally transformed, responsible, healthy, self-reliant, sensitive to

women’s and children’s welfare, entrepreneurial, tax-conscious, thus creating

jobs to fellowmen as a result of attracting investments; living in a clean, green,

peaceful, orderly, well-planned, structured, developed and protected environment under

a dynamic, competent, honest and transparent governance”.

This vision reveals a strong commitment to principles of cooperation, inclusion, environmental protection and responsive governance. The bad news is that if the municipality continues to follow its current course of action, with no integrated efforts to deal with housing for the poor, it will likely move further and further away from achieving its stated objectives. The good news is that Plaridel’s municipal government has strong leadership, that is concerned with the needs of the least advantaged sectors of society and that enjoys the confidence of Plaridelenos.

The following section provides a brief overview of the current context in Plaridel. Understanding the present situation in the municipality will be useful for putting into perspective possible ways of bringing this reality closer to what the population has envisioned for the region.

Current Housing Situation in Plaridel

As changes within the broader framework of national and regional policies occur, it is at the local level that many of its implications are made evident. In the Philippines, significant responsibilities were transferred to local governments in the early 1990s through the enactment of the Local Government Code (Republic Act 7160), including the responsibility for managing housing for the poor. The Code emphasizes the role of Local Government Units in planning and administering municipal regions, and requires the formulation of comprehensive land use and development plans by each municipality. The recent enactment of the Local Housing Act represents a further

step in ensuring that local governments dedicate special attention to managing housing markets and ensuring solutions that attend to the needs of the urban poor.

Plaridel still has a long way to progress in terms of institutionalizing initiatives around housing for the poor. The municipality still does not count on formal structures, a designated body or specific personnel accountable and responsible for overseeing housing issues and dealing with related problems. Therefore, there is relatively little information and documentation available on the housing situation in Plaridel.

The lack of data also represents an added constraint. The municipality has no centralized database and has not engaged in research and data collection activities in a systematic manner. The description of the current housing situation in Plaridel contained in this section is based on field observation, interviews and focus groups, the two previous land use plans, and reports written by university students.

The Role of the Barangay

The barangay is the most localized legal governmental unit and has its own delimited territory, resources and administrative structure. It also enjoys the status of a Local Government Unit (LGU). The Philippines Local Government Code of 1991 (Republic of the Philippines; RA No. 7160, Section 384) states the following: “As a basic political unit, the barangay serves as the primary unit of government policy, plans, programs, projects and activities in the community and as a forum wherein the collective views of the people may be expressed, crystallized and considered, and where disputes may be amicably settled”.

As noted by a number of researchers, barangays in many regions of the Philippines are controlled by traditional politicians, their family members or “close friends”, who often remain in power for years through manipulated elections (Peronilla, R. 2007;). This is closely related to the fact that barangays receive a substantial amount of funding to conduct their activities, but there is often little transparency as to how the funds are used. Barangay captains also seem motivated to provide help, such as lending small sums of money to residents in times of need


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and purchasing medicine, for example. Even though many initiatives targeting the informal settlements seem to occur especially around election time, residents seem to feel comfortable to resort to barangay officials and the barangay captain in times of need.

Barangays seem to be very approachable to residents of informal settlements in Plaridel. Residents stated that the barangay acts as a mediating voice between the citizens and the municipality. While residents approach the barangay in person, they rarely approach the municipal hall directly. Barangay officials often have a personal relationship with residents, and a number of volunteers and others involved in barangay activities are residents of informal settlements themselves.

Barangays also engage in a number of activities that provide social support to the community. These include, for example, training and literacy programs, guidance to out-of-school youth, weekly garbage collection and waste management activities, health campaigns and different livelihoods programs. These services were always emphasized during the interviews with barangay officials. However, the degree of effectiveness of such programs and the engagement of barangays within the community seems to vary considerably. This was perceived through interviews with the residents. In general, a combination of factors that range from particular political interests to political clashes, lack of budget allocation and technical coordination seem to make many of the barangay initiatives largely reactionary rather than proactive.

Social/Economic/Physical Profile

The largest concentration of informal settlements can be found around the Philippines National Railway road and along the protection dikes and irrigation canals (Munic. of Plaridel, CDLUP, p. 144). A large number of settlements is also located along the Angat River. A smaller portion of informal settlements can be found scattered in different areas around the municipality.

The characteristics of settlements vary quite considerably. It is relevant to note that many settlements seem cohesive and vibrant, with a strong sense of community and neighborliness. Some areas seem much cleaner and more

organized, with clear roads and homes built out of brick. Many others, particularly those closest to the river, are very precarious. Garbage, exposure to flooding, improper sewerage, and the use of unsteady building materials such as scrap metal and cardboards are common characteristics of these areas. The vulnerability of residents to natural disasters and their exposure to risk is of particular concern. Flooding, for example, affects especially the poorest residents who reside closest to the river and are forced to find shelter and relocate temporarily during the monsoon season and where flooding occurs.

INFRASTRUCTURE

SEWAGE & SANITATION:

Sewerage is currently disposed of directly into the Angat River. During a visit to informal settlements in Banga 1, residents claimed that the absence of septic tanks caused a “really awful smell especially during the rainy season”. The larger informal settlements we visited had several public toilets, which are supposed to be maintained and cleaned by the users. Many of these toilets were out of service because of vandalism, poor maintenance, or because their users had converted them for another use such as storage (Interviews, Informal Settlers).

SOLID WASTE:

FIGURE 2. RESIDENTS WORKING IN THE DUMPSITE, BARANGAY PARULAN


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Plaridel’s dumpsite is currently located a few meters away from the Angat River, and is surrounded by settlements in Barangay Parulan. A large proportion of the residents of these surrounding settlements seem to obtain their livelihoods from working at the dumpsite. As expressed by an interviewee, around 80 percent of the average of 200 families residing in the area around Parulan’s dumpsite depend on the garbage: “It is a very hard life because except for those who look for kang-kong in the river, we depend only on the waste of the dump area.”. The residents also expressed concern due to the high occurrence of diseases, particularly asthma and other respiratory conditions (Interview, Informal Settlers).

Most of the informal settlements visited by our group received garbage collection services from the municipality or Barangay. The Barangays are also sometimes engaged in programs to promote environmental awareness and waste segregation. Nevertheless, backyard burning of garbage is still a common practice, especially around the informal settlements.

As stated in Plaridel’s Community Land Use Plan (CLUP), the “location of the dumpsite is not ideal and is considered destructive to the ecosystem” (39). Fortunately, a project is under way for relocating the current dumpsite. The CLUP suggests that the proposed dumpsite/landfill project is highly feasible “if settlements near the dike road could be contained or removed” (41). More in-depth information on this topic can be found in the report on solid waste management prepared by University of British Columbia students.

SLAUGHTERHOUSE:

Plaridel’s slaughterhouse is also located meters away from the Angat River and is surrounded by informal settlements in Barangay Banga 1. The sanitary conditions around the slaughterhouse seem inappropriate given that wastewater from the slaughterhouse drains straight down the hill reaching the homes of those who reside closer to the river, until it flows into the river.

FIGURE 3: WASTEWATER DRAINAGE FROM PLARIDEL’S

SLAUGHTERHOUSE NEXT TO SETTLEMENTS IN

BARANGAY BANGA 1

During our visits in the area we noticed that residents would often be in the river collecting kang-kong, fishing, or in the case of children and youth, playing in the water.

FIGURE 4. KIDS PLAYING IN ANGAT RIVER AROUND

BARANGAY BANGA 1


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FIGURE 5. MEN FISHING IN THE ANGAT RIVER NEAR

BANGA 1

EMPLOYMENT, TRAINING AND EDUCATION

Most of those interviewed, including residents of all barangays, cited unemployment, lack of secure jobs and livelihood opportunities as the most pressing problems faced by those residing in informal settlements. Barangays provide some livelihood and training programs to residents, but the reality faced by the majority of them is still that of vulnerability and insecurity. Lack of educational attainment was also perceived as a major concern. Visits were made to various schools in Plaridel and the major concern with regards to children and youth residing in informal settlements seems to be high drop-out rates. Poorer children and youth often drop out because they are unable to afford the cost of transportation, lunch, and annual school fees. In addition, they often have to help their parents look after younger children, or with income generation or manual labour, for instance agriculture. More information on livelihoods and business strategies in Plaridel can be found in the report prepared by University of British Columbia students on this topic.

COMMUNITY ORGANIZATION AND ACTION

Community organization is very important within informal settlements. A resident of Banga 1, for example, stated that before the residents association was formed there was little coordination between the residents and the barangay,

and it was much harder for the barangay to respond to actual needs of the people (Interview, Informal Settlements). Without organized community leadership it seems much harder for citizens to express their demands and for the barangay to engage in activities within the informal settlements. Even though community members are very committed and willing to dedicate their time to the association, lack of budget seems to represent a main barrier to the initiation and continuation of (Interview, Informal Settlements).

TRANSPORTATION

The majority of Informal settlers uses jeepneys and tricycles to commute, irrelevant of the location where they live. Many residents are in fact employed as tricycle drivers. Some of those who reside around the dikes expressed concern with accessibility and complained that there is no easy road access to their homes. It seems like youth and women were particularly concerned. More detailed information on the transportation situation in Plaridel can be found in the report prepared by University of British Columbia students on this topic.

Savings & Loans

Squatters in Plaridel employ a variety of savings and loan practices, and have differing ability to save and access to financial institutions depending on their economic means and profession, and depending on the neighbourhood in which they live. It is important to understand these gaps in access to finance because of the repercussions they have for squatters’ livelihood generation and ability to afford housing. TABANG One contact felt that a small group of the residents,

maybe 10 people, would be willing and able to form a savings group saving 50php/week

They felt there was a big need for access to finance in the community

Source: Interviews with Informal Settlers in Tabang. BANGA I


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One contact felt many residents would be able to save 10php/day

They felt about half the residents were earning 250php-300php/day on a regular basis throughout the year. Those who carried fertilizer earned only 80php/day (they used to earn 200php/day but the wage decreased recently)

The contact did not think there were any formal or

informal mechanisms the residents used for obtaining loans. The only infusions of capital they knew of were donations from the municipality

Access to finance seemed like a foreign idea to the

contact and they did not seem to have considered the potential need for this service

Source: Interviews with Informal Settlers in Banga I. SAN JOSE A focus group thought that, when lending from a local

private lender in the wet season, residents who borrowed 1000php had to pay back 3 cabans of palay (worth 700php at that time) and 500php in cash (1200php~20% interest)

For the same loan in the dry season the borrower would have to pay back 3 cabans of palay (worth 900php at that time) and 600php in cash (1500php~50% interest)

Source: Interviews with Informal Settlers in San Jose. CULIANIN The focus group felt thought the only access the

finance in the community was through private moneylenders

These lenders charge 10%-20% interest. The lenders are able to collect the money because they collect it on a daily basis

Previously there was a private rural bank but it folded

because some of the organizers died and too many people were defaulting on loans

The focus group felt there was a big need in the community for access to finance at a lower interest rate

Source: Interviews with Culianin Barangay officials.

Tenure Relationships in Plaridel

A variety of tenure structures over land and the built environment are currently active in the informal settlements of Plaridel. It’s important to understand the operation of these heterogeneous structures because of the repercussions they have for tenure security and income generation. This list isn’t exhaustive – it’s the result of preliminary interviews with relevant stakeholders – but it’s sufficient to inform tentative recommendations for informal settlement programming.

Occupation of public land

Many informal settlements are located on public lands. These include lands adjacent to the Angat River, the primary irrigation canals, and the national railway line. Plaridel’s current local executive adheres to the popular political culture in the Philippines of allowing informal occupation of idle public lands until those lands are needed for public use, such as infrastructure. There is also an expectation that where removal of settlers is necessary, compensation or resettlement will be provided, but there is no legislation which dictates the exact form this compensation should take (Interview, Laurie). The only settlers with legally guaranteed rights are those that settled on public lands previous to 1972. They are protected under the Lina Law. The assessor’s office is collecting taxes from those informal homes with an assessed value of PHP 175,000+, based on the size of the home. This is a ‘built structures’ tax. The assessor’s office does not collect any ‘real property’ taxes from informal settlements (Interview Pascua). It is possible for informal settlers adjacent to the PNR line to lease that land from the national government, but Plaridel’s municipal staff were unsure whether the land


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is currently being leased and how much leasing costs (Interview, Pascua; Interview, Laurie).

Occupation of private land

Many of the lands on which squatters have settled are claimed or believed to be owned by private owners. The legitimacy of ownership is often unclear because of a lack of centralized documentation or a lack of documentation entirely. There are a variety of precedents for private ownership of which we have become aware. EXISTING PRIVATE OWNERSHIP Full title: Some owners have longstanding or recently

purchased full title to land. Such owners are required to pay real property tax in all cases and business tax if they are using the land for large scale income generation like rental. Most fully titled lands in Plaridel are known to the municipality and charged real property taxes. Some owners have not paid their real property tax in many years. Those lands adjacent to the Angat River are the least well monitored by the municipality and the highest incidence of delinquent tax payment. None of the lands are being charged business tax because the Assessor’s office doesn’t have systemic information about current informal rental practices (Interview, Pascua).

Tax declaration: Some owners with hereditary claims to land possess a tax declaration which gives them the right to apply for full title. To receive full title they must first pay 10 years of back taxes (Interview, Pascua).

Non-existent, lapsed, or ambiguous ownership:

Some of those who claim longstanding hereditary rights to land may have no documented rights, or may have extinguished those rights in the past. Some of those who owned land around the dyke, sold those rights to the government when the dyke was built, but there is not up-to-date documentation of which owners have been paid by the government (Interview, Pascua; Interview, Mayor).

OCCUPATION WITH PAYMENT

Many informal settlers are making regular tenure payments to individuals claiming to be owners of the land on which they are squatting. No informal settlers to which we spoke had seen proof of ownership in the form of a written contract. We have heard reports that private owners have enforced their payment schemes with the threat of expulsion, and have carried through with expulsion in some cases. Owners charging payments to occupants should be paying business taxes as well as following common business practices such as issuing receipts and charging rent according to rent control laws (Interview, Pascua). In our interviews with informal settlers we heard no reports of tenants being issued receipts for their payments (I. Informal Settlers). Below are listed the tenure structures being used by these landowners that we have encountered: Rental: Many squatters on private land adjacent to the

Angat River are being charged a monthly or yearly rental rate with no contractual security of tenure (Interviews, Informal Settlers)

Rent to own: Some private lots in Poblacion are occupied by squatters who are paying rent which will result in land ownership once the entire cost of the land has been paid (Interviews, Informal Settlers)

Right to use: Some squatters adjacent to the Angat

River have reported paying for usufruct rights to their homes. These rights do not include the right to sell their home or the right to the land under the house. These were verbal agreements with no written contract or receipt given. We heard reports of landowners selling usufruct rights and then demanding further rent payments from the same households. There are also cases of squatters believing they had the right to sell their usufruct rights to another household, and the new households being made to pay several or ongoing rental payments by the landowner after sale (Interviews, Informal Settlers).

Utility and land renovation payments: We have

heard reports of private owners charging fees to squatters who wish to perform upgrades such as installing electrical connections, or digging canals or wells. These fees go above any cost that the upgrade might inflict on the landowner, such as the cost of


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obtaining a permit from the municipality for a new electrical connection (Interviews, Informal Settlers).

OCCUPATION WITHOUT PAYMENT Some squatters occupying private lands do not make any payments to the private owner. Sometimes this is because the owner is absent or doesn’t currently need the land. In other cases there is a verbal agreement that squatters can stay on one portion of a private lot for free, if they do not invade or allow other squatters to invade another portion of the private lot. Sometimes the owner might not demand payment because they’re aware that their own tenure is open to dispute (Interviews, Informal Settlers).

Informal/informal transactions

Many informal settlers are currently exercising informal ownership rights to extract payment from other squatters. These rental and ownership transactions were most common in the high density settlements adjacent to the Angat River, likely because there is no open space for newcomers to build their own homes. Though some ‘Professional Squatters’ generate income by selling or renting multiple houses, we did not encounter any squatter landlords or syndicates that have a monopoly or oligopoly over rentals or sales. House ownership: This is a verbal agreement where

a previous owner gives a new owner right to use and sell a house in exchange for a lump sum. Those involved seem to realize this right does not extend to the land under the house and that there is no legal security attached to the payment. Some squatters sell their house because they need to move to another city or part of Plaridel, or because they need to generate income quickly. ‘Professional squatters’ build one or more structures in excess of their own need, for the specific purpose of sale. In the formal sector they would be considered housing developers (Interviews, Informal Settlers).

Rental: Commonly squatters will rent out space within or attached to their home, on a monthly basis, to generate additional income. It is not uncommon for two

families to live in one room, with one family paying rent to the other. Reasons for renting include: temporary residence; recent immigration; lack of space for new housing construction; inability to construct one’s own home; or an inability to pay the lump sum necessary for informal home ownership. Some professional squatters rent out one or more homes. We encountered several situations where rent was being paid to someone outside of the informal settlements or even in another city (Interviews, Informal Settlers).

Pricing

BANGA I: Rent is typically 50php/month directly adjacent to the

Angat River, 200php-400php/month in the middle, and 400php-600php/month farthest from the river.

One contact felt a reasonable price for resettlement housing would be 500php/month, if it was small, and without electricity, water, and a comfort room. They felt most people would be happy to pay this.

The same contact felt 1500php/month would be a

reasonable price for a larger resettlement house with electricity, water and a comfort room. They felt less people would be able to afford this.

(Interview, Informal Settlers)

BANGA II 600 households: half live on land owned by several

private landowners, and all 300 pay rent to private owners

Half live on government land and some of these squatters pay rent professional squatters

Depending on size and structure rent is 300php-

500php/month, but about 90% pay 300php/month (Interview, Banga II Barangay captain and officials)

TABANG Estimates ranging from 20,000php to 50,000php to

buy a house by a secondary canal in Tabang were made by informal residents.


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Everyone builds own house. Sometimes extended

families live together, but no one pays rent One contact felt that everyone could afford

1500php/month to pay installments on resettlement housing, if that included utility costs

Another contact felt many people could only afford

500php/month on installments (not including utilities). They felt these people would need a water tap installed and could afford the cost of water, 80php/10m3, but could forgo electricity in the short run.

A landowner adjacent to the Barangay hall is going to

evict squatters in order to develop the piece of land for commercial purposes, but will pay them 60,000php in compensation for the settlers to build their new houses. The land for relocation will be provided for free by the owner

(Interview, Tabang Barangay captain and officials)

PARULAN All the households adjacent to the dumpsite (200

households) pay 1500php/year to the private owner (De Los Reyes family)

Need two months down payment to move there. Rent must be paid on time even though its paid once a year

The De Los Reyes family has been charging rent since

the first contacts moved there 15 years ago. In the past rent was 700php/year

Usufruct rights cost 10,000php-15,000php depending

on the size of the lot and quality and size of the house Usufruct and rent costs are not tied to risk of flooding An employee from the assessor’s office came to inform

them that they would soon have to start paying taxes to the municipal government, depending on the size of their lot and the time they had lived there. The employee was recording the dates of squatter settlement as later than the squatters were reporting

because the employee said this would decrease the cost of back-tax payments. This tax payment would be an additional cost on top of the rent they already pay to the private owner. The employee told the squatters they should stop paying rent to the private owner but did not say how they could do this.

(Interviews, Informal Settlers).

SAN JOSE In the 1980s the typical price for user rights to a house

was 8,000php-10,000php. Now it’s 20,000php-50,000php

(Interview, Informal Settlers.)

MUNICIPAL TAXATION Squatters are charged rent if their houses are

assessed at a market value of more than 175,000php. Other municipalities do this too

A typical house of this value will owe 351php/year in

taxes (Interview with Mr Arsenio Pascua, Municipal Assessor)

Planning Efforts to Date

Plaridel’s first Comprehensive Development and Land Use Plan was formulated in the late 1990s in compliance with the requirements of the Local Government Code. It covers the period spanning from 1999 to 2004 and focuses on medium-term goals and priorities (Municipality of Plaridel, CDLUP, p. I). The document represents the first substantive study of the area’s land use patterns and socio-economic characteristics, including a compilation of local-level data that attempts to provide a systematic understanding of the region. The plan was formulated by a group of consultants in partnership with the municipal government, and claims to “serve as an effective management/executive and regulatory tool to give direction to the growth and progress of Plaridel towards the vision and philosophy of its present leadership” (Municipality of Plaridel, CDLUP, p. 4).

However, the plan seems more valuable in terms of what it reveals as constraints and needs of the region rather than in terms of what it suggests for potential development


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directions, particularly with regards to housing and shelter. The lack of technical capacity, accurate or systematic data, and research and development efforts, for example, represent a constraint for the formulation of the plan itself. No long-term historical data was available for the region. Moreover, the document was formulated under a more traditional planning philosophy and does not incorporate public input from the community. The vision and recommendations are based on the judgments of the technical team and government staff.

Nevertheless, the plan contains a substantial section covering the general profile of the municipality, including an assessment of its physical, social, economic and institutional characteristics, and acknowledges housing and shelter as an area of priority to be addressed by the municipality (p. 139). The following is a summary of the main areas of concern regarding housing and shelter in Plaridel, as described in the 1999-2004 Comprehensive Development and Land Use Plan:

Residential areas make up around 12 percent (or 516.8 hectares out of 4,250 hectares) of Plaridel’s total land area (p. 46). Many subdivisions are underdeveloped and lack proper drainage, roads, canal and water systems;

Many housing units are unaffordable to lower-income people or the unemployed, and residential areas are often owned by prominent families who develop their land for commercial use or other purposes (p. 249-250). The majority of landholdings in Plaridel are “owned by a few prominent families who are not development-oriented due to some kind of strong family ties” (p. 204). In the 1990s some large tracts of land were purchased by multinational groups (p. 205);

Lack of proper zoning and illegal land use, including the construction of subdivisions such as Fil-Estate, caused irrigation canals to fill up and have led to the destruction of valuable water bodies (p. 42);

Developers tend not to “cover facilities that should be standard for any subdivision developer” (p. 139). Existing subdivision conditions are in “dire need of LGU support as roads, drainage, water system and flooding are some of the problems abandoned by developers” (p. 205);

Plaridel’s subdivisions “could accommodate migrants from the metropolis up to the year 2020. Besides the sky-rocketing prices of residential habitat in Metro Manila that may no longer be affordable to the middle class, which forms the majority of the working class, Plaridel could be the fall back alternative for residential purposes” (p. 201); According to the Plan, even though Plaridel counted on sufficient area for housing in its subdivisions and thus faced no challenges in terms of housing supply. The problems are seen as due to “illegal construction of houses and squatters along the protection dike” (p. 37).

The second Comprehensive Land Use Plan (Municipality of Plaridel, CLUP 2002), a much more concise version as compared to the first plan, was formulated in 2002 and covers the years 2002 through 2012. This version was formulated by urban planning students from the University of the Philippines. It builds upon the first plan but demonstrates an increased preoccupation with ensuring a planning approach that moves away from traditional “top-down’ practices by emphasizing, for example, the role of the planner as a facilitator rather than a consultant. On paper, the plan was also formulated with the principles of citizen participation as a foundational principle. This shift in attitude demonstrates a very positive change of attitude of Plaridel’s planning approach and represents an important start in the process of working towards livability and sustainability. As described later in this document, this type of university-governmental partnerships offers great potential benefits for the municipality and should be explored as a means to ensure that the government exploits cutting-edge expertise from the academic field. Although the plan states that it incorporates the outcomes of visioning exercises and workshops held with government staff and community representatives, the extent of the public participation exercise remained limited (Interview Mila, 5th August)

The following is a summary of the main areas of concern regarding housing and shelter in Plaridel, as described in the 2002-2012 Comprehensive Land Use Plan:

The urban core of Plaridel is identified as barangays Poblacion, Banga 1 and Tabang (13). Residential areas can be found in 18 subdivisions, along the main


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roads and in the protected river dikes, which are occupied by informal settlers (15);

There is no modern system of collection and disposal of waste. The majority of the households have individual septic tanks that end up in the Angat River (20). Backyard burning of waste is still popular (20);

There are incongruities between the existing utilization type of land and other natural resources, its legal status, intended use and natural suitability (24);

The current and eventual high prices of land in the municipality excludes a significant portion of the population from land ownership (28). The issue of social polarization that results from a bias of development in some barangays may worsen the problem of illegal occupancy (28);

Many of the municipality’s natural open spaces such as riverbanks and floodplains are either being degraded or threatened by development activities and by informal settlers (28); The poor are often unable to afford urban land and the ones they are left with are often unsuited to settlement. They often lack security of land tenure and reside in areas with grossly inadequate infrastructure (35).

Realty developers have been violating regulation on subdivision development as per HLURB policy. The 30% allocation for open space and other unsold lots shall be confiscated as penalty by the local government. These can be used as playground and housing project sites for dislocated residents and migrant (informal) settlers (68).

In spite of the directions provided by the land use plans, the municipal government of Plaridel is still being challenged by pressing demands and has been unable to respond promptly enough to the population’s needs2. In terms of housing and infrastructure, the expansion of squatter settlements around the region in the last decades as well as the environmental and health dangers to which many settlers are exposed represent some of the region’s most pressing concerns.

2 See case study on Sitio Bacood for an example within the context of Plaridel.

Legal and Policy Framework3

Local Government Code

As mentioned above, the 1991 Local Government Code (Republic Act No. 7160), which set the Philippines on the path to decentralization, devolved housing and urban development functions to local governments, mandating them to undertake housing developments and lead the land use planning strategies. Rules 5 and 6 of the Implementing Rules and Regulations of the Code specify the role of LGUs in providing for housing. Local governments are authorized to access private capital through issuing bonds for development projects (e.g. municipal housing bonds) (Government of the Philippines, 1991).

Urban Development and Housing Act

The Urban Development and Housing Act of 1992 (RA No. 7279) is aimed at uplifting “the conditions of underprivileged and homeless citizens in urban areas and in resettlement areas by making available to them decent housing at affordable cost, basic services, and employment opportunities” (Government of the Philippines, 1992, Sec. 2). It encourages equitable land utilisation guided by the needs of the disadvantaged rather than only market forces; optimization of land and urban resources; development of commercial and industrial areas to generate economic opportunities; access to land and housing by disadvantaged; elimination of urban dysfunctions; improved rural-urban balance; equitable land tenure; public participation; improved LGU capacity.

It states that municipalities should undertake an inventory of their lands indicating their land-use type and degree of utilization. Once the inventory has been undertaken, sites for socialized housing and resettlement can be identified, taking into consideration, among other factors, availability of services and facilities, accessibility of the site, and number of beneficiaries. The Act lists the lands that should be prioritized for acquisition (e.g. government lands, alienable lands, etc.), modes of acquisition (e.g.

3 Full resources available online at: http://www.hudcc.gov.ph/index.php?p=25


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community mortgage, land swapping, etc.) and eligibility requirements for social housing beneficiaries. The Act states that the National Housing Authority (NHA) and local governments should cooperate in the creation of alternatives for the disposition of lands for socialized housing. The Act states that sale or lease of the land allocated for social housing by program beneficiaries is forbidden and punishable.

Incentives for private sector participation in the provision of social housing include simplification of qualification requirements for participating, simplified financing procedures, and a number of tax exemptions. Social housing should initially have potable water, electricity, sewerage facilities, and access to primary roads and transport facilities. Other services (education, healthcare, etc.) should then be given priority by the LGU, and the program beneficiaries should be prioritized in livelihood programs and grants. Beneficiaries should participate in decision-making concerning their collective interests and rights.

A number of measures and steps pertaining to eviction and demolition are also listed as mandatory, including notice, consultation, timing and process of demolition. The Act states that resettlement of people living in risky areas (e.g. riverbanks, railroad tracks, etc.) should occur within two years of the effectivity of the Act. Resettlement sites with basic facilities should be provided by the LGU and the National Housing Authority, and no new illegal structures or dwelling units may be allowed in these areas. The Act mentions the Community Mortgage Program (CMP) as a way for dwellers to own or improve the land/ lot they live on. The Act also promotes the use of indigenous, alternative and low-cost construction materials for housing,

The LGU is responsible for the implementation of the Act in coordination with the Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council (HUDCC), the national housing agencies, the Presidential Commission for the Urban Poor, the private sector and other non-government organizations. They should prepare a comprehensive land use plan. The Act also mentions the need for the LGU to coordinate with other departments in the consideration of a viable transport system and the maintenance of an ecological balance. Longer-term thinking, such as in the

consideration of present and future population movements (e.g. from rural to urban areas) is also encouraged.

The provision for Balanced Housing Development requires developers of sub-divisions to allocate 20% of the gross area or gross cost of the project to socialized housing, for housing projects that sell for over 180,000php in highly urbanized areas and above 150,000php in non-urbanized areas. Compensation can be paid by developing a new settlement, through zonal improvement programs or slum upgrading, through joint venture projects with the LGU or other housing agencies, through participating in the Community Mortgage Program, through accrediting housing projects developed by not-for-profit organizations or by purchasing housing bonds.

Local Housing Board Act

The Thirteenth Congress of the House of Representatives (July 2004-2007) approved a revised Local Housing Board Act (H. No. 4252) at its first regular session. The Act is pending action by the Senate. Known as the Local Housing Board Act of 2008, the Act mandates that

“Every municipality, city and province covered under this Act shall have its local

housing board which shall formulate, develop, implement and monitor policies on the provision for housing and resettlement

areas, and on the observance of the right of the underprivileged and homeless to a just and humane eviction and demolition.” (Gov.

of the Philippines, 2008, Sec. 5)

The Housing Board should be composed of the municipal mayor, vice-mayor, and planning and development coordinator; the chairperson of the Sangguniang Bayan; and a representative from an NGO, People’s Organisation (PO) and housing private sector.

Its functions include: the formulation of policies on different aspects of housing programs and projects; the creation of local shelter plans; assisting in the formulation of Comprehensive Land Use Plans; undertaking public hearings; approving development plans for socialized housing projects; recommending the designation of social


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housing sites within LGU’s land use plans and recommending schemes for their acquisition and disposition; advising the sanggunian on taxation matters (e.g. to create a social housing tax and fund); and recommending partnerships with the National Housing Authority (NHA), Home Development Mutual Fund (HDMF), the National Home Mortgage Finance Corporation (NHMFC), the Home Guaranty Corporation (HGC), the Local Government Pabahay Program and other agencies’ socialized housing projects.

The Act also calls for:

“The Local Housing and Urban Development Office. – There is hereby created in the LGUs

a local housing and urban development office that shall implement the housing and

urban development policies, plans and programs formulated by the local housing

board.” (GoP, 2008, Sec.8)

This office would be headed by a housing and urban development officer, appointed by the LGU executive. The Housing Office is responsible for both recommending policies to the Housing Board, and implanting those policies that are enacted. Some of these duties include: identifying sites for social housing; ensuring the registration of disadvantaged urban dwellers as housing beneficiaries; assisting in organizing and assisting housing cooperatives and associations; advising the Board on funding schemes for socialized housing; overseeing and ensuring adequate consultation and relocation processes (through a compliance report); and ensuring compliance with measures on evictions and demolitions.

Though the Housing Board Act now provides direction concerning housing policy from the National level, these policies have only recently been implemented at the Provincial level (Interview, Mel), and have not yet been taken up at the municipal level. There are many LGU policies in Plaridel, however, which indirectly effect the housing situation in the municipality.

Municipal Policy and Gaps

Policy, or lack thereof, is important because it creates incentives and disincentives for certain behavior. Much of Plaridel’s current policy works unintentionally to create and encourage informal settlement. Some examples include: The infrastructure required for new subdivisions

(Interview, Pingol) - such as roads, electricity and plumbing - increases the price of subdivision lots beyond that which low income families are able to pay. Also, typical subdivision lots are larger than what low income families need, and can afford. This demand for extremely cheap small lots with no or minimal infrastructure that are close to the town center, is not currently being met by the formal market, and so it spills over into the informal market in the form of informal settlements.

Private owners that are formally renting their land in Plaridel are subject to business taxes and standards of infrastructure and business practice, but no standards and taxes exist for informal landlords, or penalties for illegally renting (Interview, Pascua). Landowners have every reason to rent informally and the Government currently has no reason to regulate this activity.

Both private owners and the government do however

have some incentive to prevent settlement on their lands since they must bare at least some cost for compensation or resettlement in the future if they need the land for other purposes (Interview, Lori, Mel). However both the costs and time of compensation in too uncertain to make it worth the present cost of monitoring lands.

Private owners with disputed title have little incentive

to monitor or resettle their lands since they cannot easily use that land for other, formal, productive purposes (Interview, Pascua). Without land title, it is difficult for owners to receive infrastructural services from the municipality or receive a loan, but they also do not have to pay taxes. At the same time, the municipality inflicts little penalty, or even pressure, on some semi-formal owners who fail to resolve their land title. For those landowners that do not wish to pursue formal business, it may be more profitable, given current policy, to leave their land ownership undeclared (Interview, Engineer Pingol).


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Barangay officials have a positive incentive to accept

settlers since they count as election votes, and because Barangays with a higher proportion of Plaridel’s population receive more funds from the municipality. There are currently no penalties to Barangay officials for allowing settlers. Obviously these incentives will need to change if Barangay officials are to play an active role in discouraging informal settlements

Because of the transfer of wealth involved in

resettlement projects - in terms of land title, tenure payments, construction materials, etc – there is incentive for all stakeholders involved to extract as much wealth as possible, either by manipulating the process in their favor or acting illegally. There is currently nothing to temper these incentives, or to deter foul-play or graft, because of a lack of local policy regarding the protocols for resettlement. One of the major resettlements in Plaridel, from Marie Grace to Sitio Baco’od, would have benefited from standards regarding the rights and responsibilities of stakeholders, especially with respect to compensation, consultation, and the collection or oversight of tenure payments. The will be discussed further in Part II, the case study for Sitio Baco’od

Even these few examples illustrate how Plaridel’s current policies and policy gaps, work to reinforce the settlement of slums in Plaridel. To read more about the negative repercussions of such policies, see Part II, “Policy Repercussions”.

Part II Housing for the Poor in Plaridel: Perspectives and Possibilities

How Could it Get Worse?

Part II of the Report is concerned with presenting policy options with which Plaridel can move forward in its efforts to provide adequate livelihood and shelter for its growing population. These options arise both from theory and from the real-life successes and failures of housing strategies and projects around the world. We have chosen to focus on the failures first, to bring attention to approaches that the municipality should avoid or use with caution. After this follows an in-depth discussion of policies that Plaridel could better use to aid its urban poor and over-all development. Case studies are provided throughout to give meaning and context to the recommendations.

Scenario 1 – If Nothing is Done

Inaction itself is a policy option, since many of the government’s current policies affect the poor in indirect and unintended ways (for a further description of current policies see Part I, Legal and Policy Framework)

Repercussions of Policy

If policies like these continue, the current informal settlements will densify and expand as new migrants fail to find affordable housing in the formal market, and resettlement projects fail to keep pace with the formation of new informal settlements. As demand for informal housing intensifies, prices for such housing will increase throughout the market. This will increase poverty in informal settlements by eroding the already small incomes of informal households and forcing some households to relocate to less well serviced, but cheaper, informal areas. Increased poverty has negative repercussions for: crime; substance abuse; family size; school enrollment and

education; health; sanitation; waste management; and social cohesion within informal communities and exclusion from the rest of Plaridel. This is not only ethically reprehensible but poses increased costs to the municipality in terms of health services, education, flood assistance and policing, to name a few. . The expansion of settlers into new areas could mean an increase in those exposed to environmental dangers such as canal and river flooding. Expansion could also interfere with productive activities such as agriculture, irrigation, construction of industrial sites, and may deter new businesses from locating in Plaridel. Higher prices also increase the returns to professional squatters and private landowners from extracting tenure payments from informal settlers. This concentration of wealth could lead to the formation of exploitive and powerful slumlords or slum syndicates. Such individuals or organizations can influence the social, economic and political life of the informal settlements, and even of the formal parts of the municipality. All of these factors would hamper the overall economic prosperity and social well being of Plaridel.

Section 2 – If Things are Done “the Wrong Way”

Countries all over the world have grappled with inadequate informal housing. Plaridel can learn as much from the failures as the successes, and South Africa has had more than its fair share of the former. After this introduction, specific weaknesses in policy and implementation will be further explored through other examples.

Case Study: South Africa

South Africa has a long history of top-down public housing programs. The township schemes enforced by the Apartheid government transformed into social housing programs under the post-Apartheid government. Because of the inefficiencies of government bureaucracy and the high costs of housing production, these programs were never able to meet the demand of its low-income


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population for housing, and large slums grew up around the country’s cities. Because of the failures of public provision, in 1994 the South African government introduced mechanisms to encourage private developers to produce social housing. To access social housing subsidies, private developers were meant to create a community compact with representatives from the community, which was a contract in which both parties agreed on standards and terms of development and production of the settlement. These contracts were very difficult to negotiate because of the conflicting interests of community organizations and private developers. In an effort to speed up housing production the National Government scrapped the need for community compacts to obtain subsidies, allowing the desires of private developers to take precedence over those of community members. Though physical development was faster thereafter, the resulting settlements often failed to meet the needs of communities in terms of affordability, location, housing type, and amenities. This has led to communities blocking projects, and in turn to the disengagement of the private sector with social housing production. Recently the government has pursued joint ventures with NGO and civil actors, with mixed results. Public-civil partnerships, through public development agencies, tend to have a slightly better track record than private developers for community involvement. Unfortunately, like their top-down public predecessors, these projects hide considerable subsidies, and require the government to take on a great deal of responsibility and risk. For these reasons public-civil partnerships have largely been used for high profile propaganda projects, and it is unlikely the government will adopt this technique on a large scale. Sources: Jenkins (1999), Jenkins and Smith (2001).

Demolishing settlements without compensation

Plaridel’s current administration is against demolishing informal settlements without compensation for ethical reasons (Interview, Mayor) but future administrations may

not share these ethics. It is important, therefore, to understand that eviction without compensation is not an effective way of removing squatter settlements. They form because of a lack of affordable formal housing options, and if they are destroyed they will be rebuilt in the same or new locations, but with their residents having even fewer resources than they did previously. Prior to 1988 constitution in Brazil, which entrenched the rights of squatters to land, some municipalities in Brazil withheld service provision or even tore slums downs without compensation in an effort to discourage informal settlement. This process of destruction only increased the number of families in need, given their previously marginal circumstances (Macedo, 2008).

Top-down public social housing schemes

Centralized top-down social housing schemes have been executed throughout Latin America and in South Africa since the 1980s, often formulated by the federal government and executed at the state level or by semi-independent housing organization. These schemes often used subsidized loans to purchase plots of land subdivided at urban peripheries, where residential units were constructed for purchase by low income families (Ancona, 2007). These tactics had little success in servicing large numbers of people or reaching the lowest income segments of society (Ancona, 2007). An indication of the true beneficiaries is the fact that the main lobby group for such schemes has often been the private development and construction industry, which benefits from the mass production of detached or multifamily buildings. Civil and non-governmental organizations have often been opposed to these projects on humanitarian grounds. These heavily subsidized and inefficient projects also proved to be financially unsustainable, contributing to the large external debts of practicing countries (Ferrioli, 2005; Stein & Vance 2008). In the 1990s many of these programs were dismantled or cut back by structural adjustment programs.


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Even when governments have administered community labour in the production of housing and infrastructure, the results have been bureaucratic and inefficient, losing much of the resourcefulness and adaptiveness of grass-roots self-help housing projects (Keivani & Werna 2001). Public savings funds, which subsidize household mortgages, have also existed since the 1970s. Though financially sustainable, they are targeted at the middle income employees of the formal and public sector (Ancona, 2007; Keivani & Werna 2001). Since the 1990s, the Philippines national government has promoted the idea of the state as a ‘facilitator’ instead of ‘provider’ of social housing (Llanto, 2007). Plaridel should follow this lead and meet the needs of its informal settlers through joint financing and responsibility rather than in an in a centralized manner.

Privileging public, private and NGO actors over civil actors

Many informal settlement programs in the Philippines and abroad have failed to include their beneficiaries in the process of designing the program or determining outcomes. Often there is a lack of recognition of the privileged understanding that community members have of their needs and resources, and a lack of recognition of the skills and resources they can bring to the program. Even when communities are consulted their desires are often disregarded by public, private and NGO partners, because the interests of these partners is different or even contrary to those of community members. Where community organizations are not ‘in control’ they are not able to ensure that their priorities and demands are met. This disregard for community interests can result in: opportunities for welfare improvement or job creation being overlooked; decreased quality of life for benefactors; or sale or abandonment of lots in resettlement areas. Many beneficiaries of Brazil’s early resettlement projects, which were managed by the government in a top-down fashion, ended up selling their subsidized units and moving back to informal settlements in the city core, which were closer to employment opportunities and other

amenities. The informal settlers valued accessibility over secure tenure (Macedo, 2008). In cases like this the products of government subsidies went to wealthier households that could afford the transport costs from the suburbs, and purchased the lots from the beneficiaries. The squatter populations at the city core were undiminished. A study of housing projects in Central America, found that those projects that were executed by private developers without community input produced unsatisfactory settlements. In the case of single detached settlements, privately built homes often did not allow for upgrading or expansion. Households in these instances invested more time in correcting and rebuilding their homes than in upgrading and improving them. For instance, in once case the orientation of the roof, door, and windows at the front of the house made it very difficult to modify the front wall, or to add a front porch, for use as a convenience store (Vince and Stein 2008). A study of eight Costa Rican projects, found that of those that had successfully involved communities, 80% of families improved their floors, 66% had good external walls, 75% had good ceilings, and only 11% felt vulnerable to crime and that they suffered from an inferior quality of life. The respective numbers for projects that had not involved communities were 58%, 34%, 37% and 32% (Vince & Stein, 2008). Since many NGOs are humanitarian in nature, it is more likely for their goals to line up with those of communities, but there are still instances where goals and preferences differ. Giving NGOs a position of authority can again undermine the goals and needs of communities. Some NGOs insist on certain buildings types or materials because they are familiar with them, or because of contracts with donors (Lizarralde, 2008). For instance in South Africa an Irish NGO insisted that a community change its building type from row housing to single detached housing, because the NGO was receiving materials for that building type from Ireland (Lizarralde, 2008).

Excluding the marginal

Even housing programs which seek to involve community members can unintentionally exclude the most marginal


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informal dwellers. This compromises both opportunities for welfare improvement, and the positive reception of the project by the community. Below are mentioned some policies which implicitly discourage or discriminate against marginalized sections of the urban poor. REQUIRING EQUITY OR FORMAL CREDIT RECORDS TO ACCESS

LOANS Often informal settlers have been previously unable to access formal credit markets because of a lack of equity or collateral. It is this inability to access the formal market which makes government programs necessary. Loan schemes which incorporate large down-payments or formal credit records are generally captured by the lower-middle and middle class. EDUCATION REQUIREMENTS By excluding those with low educational attainment from participation or positions of authority, programs exclude the most marginal. The reality is, though some administrative and leadership positions require literacy and certain skills, other important roles do not, and some of these skills can be learned over time or with training. Programs should be very selective in how they apply educational criteria. LOCATING SERVICES OUTSIDE THE COMMUNITY Locating information sessions, training, expert assistance and other resources outside the community discourages the participation of many residents. Women often need to stay close to home to watch children and perform domestic work, and the elderly often share in such work and may also have mobility issues. Youth may not have the freedom to venture far from home, or may have responsibilities at home after school. Also any transportation costs will be a disincentive to attend. FOCUSING ON OWNERSHIP ONLY Programs which only accommodate ownership exclude transient households, migrant labourers, and those that prefer to rent for personal reasons. These people are a reality of all informal settlements, and are often some of the most marginal residents. If their needs are not met through government programs they will be forced to find or develop other informal mechanisms that meet their needs.

Exploitation of the system

Any informal settlements programs which involve monetary transactions are susceptible to corruption and embezzlement. To avoid the misuse or ‘misplacement’ of funds, it’s important that programs be transparent, with monitoring and oversight by various stakeholders. The case of Sitio Baco’od demonstrates how easily this can happen without safeguards.

Case Study: Sitio Baco’od

In 2000, approximately 80 families were resettled in Sto. Niño from a lot of private land earmarked to become the Mary Grace sub-division, to Sitio Bacood, a lot of agricultural land (4,929m2) that was set aside to host the relocated families. The cost of the acquired land, Php500,000, was covered in part (Php250,000) by municipal funds during the term of the late Mayor, Jimmy Vistan, while the resettled families were asked to pay Php250,000, in monthly instalments of Php260 over a ten-year period. It appears that very little documentation was kept of the resettlement process, leaving a large number of uncertainties regarding:

The consultation process that occurred prior to the resettlement;

The financial transactions that have occurred between the families and the private owner of the land;

The way the resettlement process was undertaken;

In interviews with the informal settlers and municipal staff, it was thus not possible to ascertain the details of the resettlement process. However, the confusion surrounding the process points to a number of lessons that should be heeded, should further resettlement of informal settlers be undertaken in the future. These include:

Even when the land is in private hands, the Municipality should be involved in monitoring the process to ensure that the informal settlers are protected from financial losses, in the process of paying the monthly amortizations. In Sitio Baco’od, there was no municipal monitoring, and thus it appears that local families were cheated or abused in some cases. One way to ensure protection of informal settlers is for the Municipality to acquire the land from


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the private owner in the first place, and then receive monthly instalments from the settlers.

A process of social strengthening is essential in order to ensure that informal settlers are better able to defend their rights against abusers of the process. In Sitio Baco’od, it appears that some of the monthly payments put forward by the families “disappeared” in the hands of the treasurer of their association, but due to lack of documentation and empowerment, the local families have lost out. Several organisations, including religious bodies, can assist in social preparation and in training on auditing, negotiating, monitoring, etc. to ensure resettled families are not taken advantage of.

Further monitoring and documentation of the process would ensure avoiding other problems that occurred in Sitio Baco’od. For instance, it appears that the private owner did not pay any compensation to the resettled families, in spite of the law, which demands that resettled households are compensated. Similarly, although the homeowners association should receive some payment if lots in Sitio Baco’od are re-sold (e.g. in cases where the families are unable to pay their monthly instalments), this does not seem to occur.

Better planning processes (and compliance with the Urban Development and Housing Act) would ensure that houses, and electricity, sewage and water facilities are provided in the new areas before relocation takes place. In Sitio Baco’od, due to impending demolishment, it appears that families were resettled before any facilities existed in the site: the four water pumps currently existing were put in place between 2001 and 2007. Similarly, families had to build their own houses upon relocation, with the materials from their old homesteads.

A livelihoods programme needs to be undertaken prior to and in combination with resettlement processes, in order to ensure that resettled families are able to pay their monthly amortisements. Several (perhaps slightly less than half) households in Sitio Baco’od appear to be unable to pay their monthly instalments and are worried they will face eviction if they will not cover the costs of their land by 2010. Furthermore, even those families that are paying, are worried about losing their property, due to the fact the loan was communal

Overall, the individuals interviewed in Sitio Baco’od felt that their lives have improved since the resettlement. They

appreciate having houses that are closer to one another (improves sense of community), having houses made in concrete (before many were made of wood or bamboo) and the fact the site has easy transport access to schools and work opportunities. Nevertheless, problems related to availability of fixed (rather than on a contract basis) employment remain the main concern of the resettled families.

Already in the case of, some payments made by the residents to their homeowners association to be transferred to the private owner, were lost by the association’s treasurer. This happened in 2002 and since then residents have made payments to the private owner directly. There are further disputes between the residents, the association president, and the private owner, about payments made since 2002. There is no way of verifying what has actually transpired because of the lack of record-keeping and monitoring throughout the process. (Interviews, Informal Settlements).

Using one-program fits all

Housing programs which put civil and NGO actors in a leadership role are most successful when they are not unduly restricted by rules and regulations. Obviously standards and protocols are necessary to ensure good conduct and transparency, but should be avoided when not absolutely necessary since they prevent actors from experimenting, and developing partnerships, programs and approaches which best suit their needs. This flexible approach is demonstrated by the experience of housing cooperatives in India.

Case Study: Cooperatives in India

India has promoted housing cooperatives since its independence. Regulations for coops exist at the national level but their success had varied in different cities depending on the local context and regulations. In a study comparing Mumbai, Chennai and New Delhi, Mumbai was found to be the most successful in terms of: number of active coops; amount of housing financed and produced by coops; and use of housing coops by the poorest in society.


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The Mumbai city government has the least cumbersome registration and approval process, the least ability to control or dissolve coop boards, and allows the greatest variety coops in terms of purpose and management. Many types of coops have developed to serve different segments of society, including: group credit coops, self-help housing coops, women’s coops, slum dwellers’ coops, housing finance coops, building coops, and tenure coops. Coops that deal with housing have adopted the tenure structures that suit them best, such as rental, full title, lease, rent-to-own, shared title, or mixed tenures. Cooperative housing developments can also include many types of private and public spaces, facilities, and infrastructure. The right combination of uses depends on the resources and priorities of the member households and the existing gaps and amenities in the neighborhood. Low income households for instance, may forgo some amenities in the short term to save on costs, such as electricity, while other communities may desire production and commercial space. (Source: Sukumar, 2001)

How can it get better? Case Studies and Policy Options

I. Learning from Case Studies

Case Study 1: Save the Marikina River

CONTEXT

Marikina City, one of the most urbanized parts of Metro Manila is composed of 15 barangays. The Marikina River, home to numerous informal settlers, used to be polluted by factory discharge, industrial and domestic waste and suffered from flooding and land degradation due to quarrying and erosion. In 1993 the Save the Marikina River was launched by the city government to rehabilitate the 22km river stretch. Within a period of seven years, a limited budget of PHP 40 million and with minimal external assistance the river has been rejuvenated and its banks are home to a large recreational and sports ground.

THE PROGRAMME

At the start of the programme, resettlement sites within the city of Manila (in Malanday and Tumana) were identified by the government. Over the course of one year, community development experts hired by the city consulted and negotiated with the settlers, thus convincing them of the relocation. The families were assisted with livelihoods and organizational skills training, in addition to being receiving assistance to organize themselves (e.g. in urban poor associations) and enroll in the Community Mortgage Programme (CMP) so that they could purchase and eventually own the private lands. Amortization rates ranged from PHP 200 to 300 per month, payable over a 25-year period. The government also ensured the provision of water, sewage and electricity facilities in the resettlement sites. This operation was part of a broader programme aimed at achieving a squatter-free Marikina. At the outset, the Marikina Settlement Office was set up to screen and select beneficiaries and initiate a dialogue between the urban poor and the LGU. Trucks were provided for the relocation and the anti-squatting law was strongly enforced thereafter, with the cooperation of social-action groups that were formed to assist in monitoring the new settlements, cleaning and greening of the communities, etc.

Once resettlement of the 597 families occurred, an ordinance fining the dumping of garbage by the river was issued and strictly enforced, with the charge of a PHP 2,000 fine or community service as penalization. Clearing the area of illegal structures, waste and silt was followed by development of pathways, roads and street lighting, and enhancement of the area’s aesthetic appeal through planting of vegetation.

ACHIEVEMENTS

The riverbanks are now characterized by walking and jogging trails, basketball courts, fountains, benches, streetlights, trees, picnic areas, gazebos, a floating restaurant and floating stage, etc. Numerous activities can be undertaken around the river today: the Centre for Excellence offers free courses and scholarships to Marikina residents in a variety of skills (massage therapy, IT, caregiving, etc.), the Marikina City Hall offers free WiFi, cultural activities are offered at the Belen Museum of Marikina, etc. In addition, the Christmas festival is celebrated in this area, and it was once the venue of the


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international Earth Day celebrations. It is thought that 3-5,000 people make use of the site daily.

SUPPORT STRATEGIES

The Local Government Code (RA 7160) was used as a basis for funding and implementation of the activities, as well as to go ahead with the resettlement of informal settlers. The Save the Marikina River programme was carried out at an average yearly cost of PHP 6.9 million over a period of six years. Most of the funds came from city revenues that grew since 1992 due to strict enforcement of real estate tax revenues, including idle land property tax. PHP 1.6 million were contributed by a number of government agencies, including two senators’ Countrywide Development Fund, and in-kind contributions were provided by the private sector, such as the Chinese Chamber of Commerce. Jobs were created through the restoration work and currently through the recreational and cultural activities.

The Marikina River Park Authority, under the office of the Mayor, was formed to oversee the river park programme in coordination with government departments (e.g. engineering, health) and the barangays. Radio DZBF broadcasts information about the progress and achievements of the programme to the public. Monitoring and sustainability is also ensured through weekly department/ office heads meetings and issuing of regular progress reports.

SUCCESS FACTORS

The strongest factors for success are deemed to be the strong political will, vision and determinacy of the Mayor, which gained people’s respect and thus their cooperation and will in maintaining the achievements gained by the project. The programme is a source of pride, conviviality, environmental consciousness and recreation for the people, and is recognized as a case that can be adapted to rehabilitate other waterways around Metro Manila. Furthermore, given its aesthetical values, it attracts investments.

The Save the Marikina River was awarded the Galing Pook Award for Innovation and Excellence in Local Governance and Hall of Fame, Cleanest Inland Body of Water in the NCR in 1995. The river is aimed to be the only ecologically alive river in Metro Manila. The city of

Marikina has been awarded other four Galing Pook awards due to their innovative governance system, which is based on the three core values of discipline, excellence and good taste. One of the awards was won in 1998 for the Squatter-Free Marikina programme.

Case Study 2: Naga City

KAANTABAY SA KAUSWAGAN (PARTNERS IN DEVELOPMENT) PROGRAMME

The Kaantabay sa Kauswagan (Partners in Development) Programme was developed in 1989 to address the problem of the urban poor in Naga City (Camarines Sur), specifically as regards the lack of security of land tenure and of basic infrastructure and services in the slum areas of 21 barangays around the city. Before the programme, conflict between landowners, government staff and squatters was common, as was the continuous threat and random occurrence of eviction. The proportion of slum

Further reading: City of Marikina website: http://city.marikina.gov.ph/ Galing Pook. 2003. Save the Marikina River, Manila, Philippines http://ksg.knowledgeplex.org/cache/documents/2471.pdf and http://www.galingpook.org/awardees/1995/1995_marine_marikina.htm Galing Pook. 1998. Squatter-free Marikina. http://www.galingpook.org/awardees/1998/1998_infra_marikina01.htm Lorenzo, I. 2007. Marikina’s (not-so-perfect) Makeover. Philippine Centre for Investigative Journalism i Report Online. 12 January 2007. http://www.pcij.org/i-report/2007/marikina.html Manasan, R.G. and R.G. Mercado. 1999. Governance and Urban Development: Case Study of Metro Manila. Philippine Institute for Development Studies: Discussion Paper Series No. 99-03. http://www3.pids.gov.ph/ris/dps/pidsdps9903.pdf Villamar Daroy, M. 2008. Saving the Marikina River, An Inspiring Story of a City. Blog article from site Experience Marikina in the eyes of a Marikenya, 23 January 2008. http://www.marikenya.com/2008/01/23/saving-the-marikina-river-an-inspiring-story-of-a-city/


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dwellers in the population increased from 14.6% in 1980 to 25% in 1989. The programme aimed to address the slum dwellers’ problems through the acquisition of private and government land, the upgrading of facilities and amenities in 27 communities, the inclusion of a livelihood component, and setting up of a relocation site for those facing eviction or demolition. 30ha of land were acquired by 1994, and 88.5ha by 2001, benefitting 2,000 families by 1994, with the number rising to close to 7,000 in 2001, and 8,700 in 2007. A “partner-beneficiary” approach was used to ensure participation of squatters in every step, with all decisions going through a tripartite mechanism between government, landowners and urban poor associations. The long-term sustainability of the process has been ensured by institutionalizing the Kantabay programme through a 1997 City Ordinance that ensures its activities are included in the city’s budget, with an annual allocation of 10% ("An Ordinance Providing for a Comprehensive and Continuing Development Program for the Urban Poor Sector and Appropriating Funds for the Purpose". Further funds can be obtained through the Sangguniang Panlungsod and under the city’s Economic Development Fund. Further institutionalization resulted from the creation of the Naga City Urban Development and Housing Board in 1993, composed of equal proportions of government and civil society members, and acting as the main policy setting body in questions of housing and urban development. The formation of over 70 urban poor associations which are formalized and recognized in different committees further serves to institutionalize the programme. The program is facilitated by the Urban Poor Affairs Office and implemented by a number of partners:

Naga City Urban Poor Federation (NCUPF), an independent body comprising of 70 urban poor organizations;

City Planning and Development Office (CPDO);

City Engineer's Office (CEO); Public Employment Service Office (Metro PESO); Other government agencies and NGOs.

Success factors: Adoption of a partner-beneficiary approach. Specific focus on Naga’s urban poor sector suffering

from land tenure issues. Initial prioritization of land tenure issues over shelter. Reliance on NGOs, instead of government, for the

achievement of specific tasks that they are better equipped to address.

Dealing with urban poor organizations over individuals, thus forcing individuals to become organized.

Attempt at integration of the urban poor into mainstream development.

Gender sensitivity by benefitting women-headed households.

Tripartite mechanism:

National government provides operational and financial support for land acquisition;

Urban poor associations raise equity for land acquisition, provide labour for upgrading projects, provide legal assistance and support for the regularization of land titles, and do community organizing;

Private landowners cooperate by negotiating (often long-standing) land tenure disputes rather than resorting to eviction, and benefit if upgrading occurs in their areas, e.g. as a result of land swapping or land sharing.

A number of sectoral strategies were put in place in order to implement the programme: On-site development strategies to transfer land

ownership:

Direct purchase of land by the government, which is then paid back by land-occupants.

Land swapping of an occupied area for an unoccupied one of similar size, with amortization of lots by land occupants.


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Land sharing through an arrangement between the landowner and occupants.

Purchase of an occupied property using the Community mortgage financing programme.

The recent addition of the Bayadnihan Programme, a work-for-pay scheme that assists community land-buyers to pay their amortizations off by working on infrastructure projects and their maintenance (e.g. water supply schemes, buildings, streets, etc.), beautification of facilities, garbage collection, etc.

Equity is built up through negotiation between the government and the community, and depending on the lot area of each beneficiary. The equity generally ranges between 10 and 50% of the acquisition cost.

Off-site development strategies as safety nets for

victims of eviction:

Establishment of relocation/ resettlement sites. Getting authorization from national government to

prioritise use of public lands for the urban poor.

Support strategies:

Institutionalization of separate urban poor programme under the City’s Livelihood programme for loans.

Establishment of an Urban Poor Affairs Office and Urban Poor Trust Fund.

Availability of funds for capability building activities, e.g. for NGOs and urban poor associations.

Sustainability and replicability policies:

Landbanking: acquisition of land for future resettlement.

Strengthened shelter programme for mass housing.

Enhanced livelihood component. Financial resource mobilization through the Urban

Poor Trust Fund to generate equity for landowners

Workshops to share Naga’s experience with other Local Government Units.

The programme has already been replicated in a few cities and municipalities in the surrounding provinces.

Case Study 3: Housing Finance in India

Though post independence India was abysmal in its leadership of housing provision, since the 1990s the government has significantly improved its policies and implementation by focusing on finance and support. Unlike most developing countries, its homeless population has decreased in absolute and relative terms, from 17.9 million in 1991 to 15.1 million in 2001, and from 11.8% to 7.9% of the population. In 1987 the National Housing Bank (NHB) was created as a nucleus for housing related finance in the country. It channels funds to the regional and local level and promotes alternative means of finance such as savings cooperatives. By 1999 there were 368 Housing Finance Companies in India. The inclusion of commercial banks for

Further reading: Anzorena, E.J. 2008. Naga City Partners in Development Program (Kaantabay sa Kauswagan). Selavip Newsletter, Journal of Low Income Housing in Asia and the World: April 2008 http://www.anzorenaselavip.net/download/april08/047%20-%20050%20%20Phil%20Naga.pdf Naga City. Kaantabay sa Kauswagan (Partners in Development). Inside Cityhall – Naga City website. http://www.naga.gov.ph/cityhall/kaantabay.html UNESCO. Kaantabay sa Kauswagan, An Urban Poor Program in Naga City, Philippines. UNESCO-MOST Clearing House Best Practices. http://www.unesco.org/most/asia8.htm Contact: Jesse M. Robredo Office of the City Mayor, 2/F, City Hall, Juan Miranda Avenue, Naga City 4400 Urban Poor Affairs Office Multipurpose Building, City Hall, Juan Miranda Avenue, Naga City 4400 www.naga.gov.ph


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housing finance in the 1990s also increased competition significantly. Through the NHB the government subsidizes loans, deducts interest payments and grants tax holidays for social housing projects. Previous to 1990 rent controls had discouraged the production of rental units in India. In 1990 the rent controls were removed for many urban regions and types of developments, and modified for the rest to fall more in line with the real cost and value of land and property. This stimulated private and civil production of rental in the country. Source: Mahadeva (2006).

Case study 4: The Homeless People’s Federation of the Philippines

The HPFP is a grassroots NGO which by December 2002, had 39,000 members with combined savings of US $700,000, and was involved nationwide in 11 land acquisition projects. The HPFP has a strategy of mobilizing communities, initiating savings based financial strategies, and engaging the public sector. The triggers for mobilization are generally the introduction of savings schemes, or a specific land problem. The HPFP approaches communities where health or security of tenure and at high risk, and is also approached by local governments or communities that want to initiate an upgrading or resettlement process. Though the Community Mortgage Programme (CMP) offers subsidized loans for purchase and development of land, the HPFP finds the CMP budget inadequate and delayed. To address both the short and long term financial needs of its members, the federation has developed a mortuary fund, health insurance, voluntary savings, compulsory savings (microcredit), land and housing savings, and an Urban Poor Development Fund (UPDF). The US$700,000 saved by HPFP members is managed centrally, and has been used to leverage US$1.7mil from multilateral agencies (60% of total), the national government (15%) and northern donor agencies (15%). They want to localize this fund to the municipal level so it’s more responsive and accountable to local situations, less

bureaucratic and constrained by international and national standards, and so members are more invested in the fund. The HPFP has also created the Philippines Action for Community-led Shelter Initiatives (PACSII) to finance shelter creation that private institutions will not. This organization is also gradually being localized. The HPFP feels it’s essential that community members become involved and take leadership roles in housing projects so they can discover and articulate to their needs to the HPFP and government and NGO partners. These needs go beyond land and housing to services such as economic development programs, and infrastructure such as healthcare and daycare facilities. Community leaders often become permanent employees or contacts of the HPFP, involved in the iterative learning process of the organization. The HPFP is able to spread information about successes and strategies between these members, and their input is used to inform the long term direction of the HPFP. Out of this cumulative experience the HPFP has successfully recommended changes to national legislation that: streamline the legal framework of land tenure negotiations; relax technical standards of land development for socialized housing; and devolve land regulation functions to local governments. Finally, the HPFP promotes community involvement because the greater the scale and visibility of community mobilization, the more that governments want to become involved. When it partners with local governments the HPFP draws up an agreement that divides the necessary tasks based on their respective capabilities and resources. The HPFP often starts by performing a survey or census of poor communities. This informs the local government about the reality of the marginalized, and provides an opportunity to inform the poor about savings schemes, tenure options, and the ability to organize. This is always done with the consent of the Barangay, who is important since they prepare and approve physical, economic and social development plans. They also engage Barangay development councils, which can help influence municipal decision making. Some of the strategies which have been pivotal to the success of the HPFP’s campaign for secure land tenure include:


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aligning projects, and concessions with local governments, along electoral cycles to avoid lapse on agreements and loss of momentum between terms

establishing relationships with bureaucracy and career officials that outlast electoral governments

developing technical competence within HPFP to aid

savvy negotiation

gaining the support of local governments by showcasing their strong track record of savings schemes, and leveraging the large national and international membership and support for the HPFP

(Source: Yu and Karaos, 2004)

II. Policy Options

There are a multitude of policy options that Plaridel can take to address the improvement and resettlement of its informal settlers. These have emerged from experiences elsewhere in the Philippines and around the world. Below we attempt to present some that have been particularly successful or particularly applicable to the Plaridel context.

Financing:

CAUTIOUS LOAN SCHEMES Even where transparency and monitoring is good, loan repayment in informal settlements programs can be poor because of the financial precariousness of the borrowers. It is necessary to design loan schemes that maximize the incentives and minimize the barriers to repayment. Strategies for ensuring repayment include:

Including livelihood training and job creation as a comprehensive package with loan schemes as a part of upgrading or resettlement

Training recipients in money management Requiring proposals for funds (verbal or written), to

ensure clients have feasible plan for use of funds and repayment

Giving small loans on a trial basis, for borrowers to

become accustomed to money management and repayment, and lenders to gain trust in clients

Loaning in stages, in amounts appropriate for purpose – small business start-up, home improvement, land down-payment - so borrowers have enough to achieve goals, but are not overwhelmed with repayment amounts or timeline.

Developing repayment schedule suitable to client –

some prefer short payback period, others lower monthly installments over longer time period

Collecting payments frequently so borrowers don’t fall

behind Allowing grace period for repayment, or having

collecting buffer fee per installment to insure for future lapses in payment

Using peer monitoring or group liability so members

will pressure each other to pay, and lend money between each other In short term to meet payment deadlines

Having clear, strong, enforceable penalties for non-

payment or default LIABILITY: Individual Liability: When liability for loan repayment is held on an individual basis, the lender is concerned only with the ability of the individual to repay. Often low income households cannot access loans because they do not meet the criteria that financing bodies use to determine ability-to-repay, such as credit records, income, equity (savings), or collateral. Though associations can informally pool resources (equal to the necessary equity for a loan), associations are not a legal entity and so their members are still individually liable for any loan. Financing bodies can refuse loans to such association because the individual members do not meet eligibility criteria. Group liability: Corporations and cooperative are legal entities that bear the liability of loans rather than their


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individual employees or members. When a coop applies for a loan only the organization itself must meet eligibility criteria – not the members on an individual basis. Unfortunately monitoring costs are greater for borrowers in group rather than individual loans, because members must enforce each other’s repayment. No member wants to be responsible for repaying on someone else’s behalf, or face having their collective assets seized because of another member’s default. Group loans can also be risky for the financing body since cooperatives can include people that wouldn’t have been individually eligible for a loan. It might also be difficult, politically, to evict an entire cooperative, so it might be difficult to enforce repayment. In India they introduced group insurance to complement group lending. This protects against individual default, instead of denying credit to the entire groups until repayment is made, as is the practice in micro credit schemes (Sukumar, 2001). Using a micro-credit loan and collection scheme within large coops could reduce monitoring costs for members, since each member would only have to monitor and enforce repayment in their small group. Another potential mechanism would be to give coops the power to evict members who continually miss loan payments. LABOUR IN LIEU OF PAYMENT Government agencies, NGOs and coops have accepted labour in place of loan repayment, or in exchange for other goods and services. It is important that the equivalent values of labour are clearly laid, so both partners are aware of their rights and responsibilities and can be held liable in the case of non-payment. Labour can take the form of:

Training other community members in certain skills

Monitoring land and preventing new informal settlers Environmental restoration and management

Waste segregation or management

Building one’s own home

Constructing community infrastructure or facilities, or the homes of others

Equivalent goods and services can include:

Receiving training in a certain skill

Ownership, lease or usufruct rights to private or public land or facilities (in full, or towards downpayment or installments)

Materials for construction of individual or public

structures or infrastructure GENERATING PUBLIC FUNDS

Public lending schemes could use revolving funds dedicated to specific programs or purposes. Any principal or interest paid back is loaned out again without being repatriated to the treasury for more general purposes. This revolving fund could be padded with government subsidies or donor contributions

A portion or all of the new revenue and resources

generated by a housing office - ie property taxes through improved collection - could be earmarked for that office’s budget.

ENSURING TRANSPARENCY AND FAIR MONEY COLLECTION All the stakeholders – ie civil, private, public (municipal and barangay), NGO - are susceptible to corruption, but there are several strategies which can serve to reduce the ability of any stakeholder to manipulate the system:

Proper documentation of agreements and transactions is necessary for proof of responsibilities fulfilled and unfulfilled, and so opposing claims can be verified. Representatives from each stakeholder group need to be properly trained in the interpretation and creation of such documentation, so they can properly represent their interests and critique the material.

There must be regular oversight of documentation by

representatives of each stakeholder group.


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Representatives must also be able to access relevant documentation on request

There need to be independent individuals or bodies to

whom stakeholders can report corruption or complaints, and feel comfortable doing so. Ideally there should be contacts both within and outside the government.

Obtaining land

To meet settlement needs in the future, the municipal government will likely need to acquire new lands for resettlement and for low income migrants. This will be difficult if the current moratorium on land conversion continues. Even without this moratorium, the government must also accommodate the future needs of agriculture, industry, and middle income residential. To meet all these needs the government needs to develop a comprehensive land use plan that uses the available land efficiently and effectively. An important part of this will be identifying the current ownership and uses of all unaccounted for lands in Plaridel, which make up about 20% of the total (Interview, Pascua). Once this plan is developed the government will need to develop mechanisms and policies for acquiring the land necessary for housing low income families. Below are included possible approaches for obtaining land. DISTRIBUTING PUBLIC LAND: Municipally owned land: Where squatters can live on municipal lands in the long term with minimal upgrading, it may be possible to issue land proclamations which give squatters assurance that there will upgrading and land title given in the medium term and they won’t be evicted in the interim. This has been done by several local governments in Manila (Porio, 2004). There may be little municipal land in Plaridel which is suitable however. Nationally or provincially owned land: The municipal government can negotiate with relevant government bodies to issue land proclamations for lands that are suitable for long term settlement. Unfortunately many of these lands are unsuitable for long term occupation. Much of the land adjacent to the Angat River is susceptible to

flooding, though the furthest households may be eligible. The area around the primary irrigation canals is less sensitive, but still interferes with agriculture. The railway right-of-way may be needed in the medium term for reconstruction of the railway. OBTAINING AND DISTRIBUTING PRIVATE LAND Private owner: Where owners have legitimate title but have not been paying their taxes, or the correct taxes, the government can enforce payment by sending 3 demand letters over the course of 15 days. After this point the government can auction the property and claim the amount owed in back-taxes. The original owner has the right to redeem the property within one year after the sale, if they pay all their back-taxes and compensate the new owner (Interview, Pascua). Since legal proceedings are costly and time consuming, it is preferable if the government can negotiate out of court to obtain lands for the government or receive some other compensation for unpaid back taxes. The government could also act as an intermediary, negotiating terms for the transfer of ownership from the private owner to informal settlers. The government could issue a tax amnesty for low income recipients of property, exempting them from the payment of interest on their premium, but not from the premium itself (Interview, Pascua). Disputed private owners: This case is similar to that of private ownership, but the municipality might be able to achieve more favourable terms for a land rights transfer to squatters if the owner of the land in question has insecure tenure. Many of the disputed lands in Plaridel are located adjacent to the Angat River, and it will be necessary to communicate with both claimant landowners, and national and provincial departments to determine the legitimacy of title. The government could create a by-law that would allow the municipality to claim or auction untitled land if the unofficial owner doesn’t attempt to title it (ie with a tax declaration) after demand letters are sent. RELOCATION OF SQUATTERS: Public responsibility: Though it is only legally binding for settlements that existed pre-1972, there is an expectation that government bodies in the Philippines compensate or resettle squatters that are evicted from their settlements (Interview, Laurie). Plaridel’s current administration wishes


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to resettle those settlers at greatest risk from flooding (Interview, Mayor). Where squatters have informal tenure agreement with private owners and other squatters, it is not the responsibility of the government to fulfill these contracts in the case of removal. The government could provide legal assistance, however, so that those affected could try to seek some compensation from the relevant parties. Private responsibility: If private owners are allowing squatters without requiring payment there is little the government can do to force expulsion. If they are charging payment, however, the government can require the owner to pay business taxes and follow business practices (Interview, Pascua). In the case that the owner does choose to expel squatters at some point, the government can require the owner to pay compensation to the squatters in the form of: land for resettlement; a down-payment on land; or money to be distributed individually.

Ownership structures

Previously it was believed that households required formal secure tenure of their land before they were willing to invest in their property. Recent literature has refuted this, showing that the perception of secure land tenure, and functional secure land tenure, are commensurate to legal property rights in terms of promoting investment by the “owner”. In the 1980s Brazil slum-dwellers started to invest in more permanent construction materials as the municipal governments started to invest in infrastructure and regularize policy to do with informal tenure. These slums began to approach the quality of the illegal subdivisions inhabited by middle income populations (Ancona, 2008). It is therefore possible for upgrading and resettlement schemes to employ less rigorous and long term land rights, while still achieving the desired results. This can speed up the process of land regularization since, for instance, governments can transfer medium term (ie 25 years) land use rights with the possibility of reclaiming the land for public use when the contract is up. Users are secure in their ability to use and transfer use of the land in the medium term, which is an important time frame for household decision making (Macedo, 2008).

Below are discussed the advantages and disadvantages of several different tenure structures that the government can employ. FULL TITLE (RIGHT TO SELL) With full title the owner can us their property as collateral to take out a loan. Owning a secure title also makes the owner more likely to invest in home improvements, and living in a secure community makes all occupants more likely to maintain and improve their premises. Without payment: distributing full titles to informal settlers is obviously the most affordable for squatters, but has long term problems. Often such lots are sold legally or illegally to wealthier households after they’ve been distributed, Since the initial recipient didn’t have to invest any of their own capital in the project, there is no loss to them in receiving the cash equivalent of the value of the lot. Also this method of distribution is usually unsustainable since it is very expensive to provide land to households free of charge, especially if any infrastructure or housing has been prebuilt on site. Payment through down-payment: Requiring a lump sum payment to acquire a lot, if it is close to market value, will likely not result in resale. Such lump sum payments, though, are usually unaffordable for low income families. If however the beneficiary was able to acquire the lot at a lump sum far below the market rate, they have a good incentive to resell to another household at the market rate. Also, subsidizing the market price of housing like this is both financially unsustainably, and a misallocation of subsidies if the lots are being resold to wealthier families. Payment through installments: Requiring only installments makes purchase more accessible to marginal families that have few cumulative savings. It is important that such ownership schemes stipulate that if the owner wishes to sell, they will only be reimbursed that which they’ve paid towards the mortgage, and the final installments to the financing body will be the responsibility of the new owner. Payment through down-payment and installments: If the down-payment is paid by the owner than it has the


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same caveats as the above down-payment case. If it is paid by another stakeholder it has similar problems to the ‘no payment’ case. To minimize the risk of resale in the case of ‘no payment’, the recipient may only be able to reclaim the cost of their installments in the case of resale, until a long time has passed, such as 5 or 10 years. Before that time the remainder of the value of the house would go to the original financer in the case of sale. LEASE (RIGHT TO USE AND SELL FOR LIMITED TIME) A long term lease has many of the same benefits of a true title, while still giving the primary owner the chance to regain their land at no cost after the lease has expired. Such agreements must be extremely clear so that leasees cannot argue for permanent land rights, based on their long-term residency, after the lease has expired. This could be a useful mechanism in cases the government or owner feels they may need the land far in the future. It should be noted though, that the shorter the lease, the less the temporary owner will be willing to invest in the property. RIGHT TO USE (NOT RIGHT TO SELL) Right to use gives the tenant the right to occupy the lot for a finite period of time, but not the right to sell at will. Leaving the lot will cause it to transfer back to the primary owner or to another household of their choosing, and the temporary owner will be compensated as was stipulated in the contract. Often this means they will only be reimbursed their payment towards the user rights plus inflation, or perhaps according to the taxable value of the land. This type of ownership allows the primary owner to control the type of tenants, and can discourage speculative sales by the tenants. Depending on the contract, the primary owner may also have the power to evict the tenant under certain circumstances, such as the refusal to pay maintenance fees in a coop, or the need to build public infrastructure on public lands. It will be in the primary owner’s interest to not allow informal re-sales, as long as they can resell the lot at a higher price than that which they had to compensate the previous vacating tenant. RENT-TO-OWN

In this scheme, the tenant eventually gains full title after they have paid off the value of the land in the form of rent installments. It is similar to full title with payment by installments, except that in this case the tenants does not have any right to resell the lot (or the value of their installments), until they have paid all the installments. If an initial down-payment was paid by a third party, the tenant might have an incentive to sell the lot once they gain ownership, if they are able to resell it for its full value. USUFRUCT-TO-OWN This structure is similar to rent-to-own except that in this case the tenant generally has more secure rights to occupy the space, and it is more difficult for the primary owner to evict them. RENT Renting has the lowest security of all the formal tenancies but can also be the most affordable and flexible. The ability to evict tenants depends on the terms of the contract. Because rental requires no down-payment and no payment towards collective property it can be the most affordable in the short term, but it is not ideal since tenants are not investing in an asset which can be resold or leveraged for taking out a loan. CONDOMINIUM In housing corporations or condos, each tenant has exclusive full title to their individual unit, and pays towards collective ownership of public spaces and management and maintenance of the building as a whole. The exact style of ownership and management of public spaces is specific to each organization. COOPERATIVES Coops can be used for one or several parts of the ‘housing’ process: savings; loans and finance; negotiation; litigation; purchasing land; land development; construction (self-help or union); housing or property tenure; maintenance; and training (Danmole, 2004). Research from India, which has a long history of housing coops, shows that tenure coops are the most favoured by low-income groups because they offer more internal small-scale credit and resource pooling (Sukumar 2001). Tenure coops are those in which members pool


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their resources to pay for property collectively. Private and union construction coops tend not to benefit low income groups because of the large up-front capital investment required to join. Finance coops tend not to benefit the poor because they require collateral to join, which low-income households don’t have or don’t want to risk losing. Another advantage for the poor in joining housing coops is having their real estate taxes and other documentation managed by the cooperative rather than on an individual basis. This is helpful for households with poor literacy or accounting competency. In addition, any tax deductions or other financial incentives applicable to non-profits are passed on to the members of coops (Danmole, 2004). Finally, as legal entities which bear group liability for loans, cooperative pose from both advantages and disadvantages to members that want to access a housing loan through their coop (see Financing section, Liability). In coops that own housing, structures and spaces can be owned collectively or individually, and can be subject to a variety of tenures even within the same housing complex. Typically in housing coops new members must a pay a down-payment and/or installments which go towards:

a) Collective ownership of public space and facilities in the coop

b) Individual ownership (ie lease or full title) of private space in the coop, or individual ownership of ‘shares’ which give them user rights to private space in the coop. Where the coop member will be paying ongoing rental payments, this private down-payment is minimal or non-existing

Members also pay: c) Ongoing management and maintenance costs

Members may or may not be able to sell their shares or unit at will, or choose the member that will replace them. These details, and the terms of compensation in the case of sale, are documented in the co-op bylaws. Some coops determine price based on the initial price paid adjusted for inflation, or on the assessed tax value of the property, to prevent gentrification of subsidized coops.

Studies comparing coops with other tenures such as rental, non-profit or public housing show that coops may be slightly more expensive and time consuming to set up, but provide additional job opportunities and experience lower rates of vandalism, litter, turnover, vacancies, and administrative, operating and repair costs (Silver, 1991). Residents of coops also report learning about home maintenance, repair, housing law, and how to live and get along with other people. American coops have been found to increase morale in their surrounding community, which might be due to the fact that coops often offer services or start ventures which promote job creation, education and socializing. Unfortunately, coops often take longer to establish than top-down housing types, even when they involve conversion of housing rather than construction, making them inappropriate for housing programs expected to yield fast results (Silver,1991). Often-cited bureaucratic and financial realities which aid housing coop formation and survival include: legal flexibility; tax credits as opposed to deductions; the availability of short term credit and emergency funding; mortgage insurance; interest-rates appropriate for non-profits; and professional and technical assistance (Silver, 1991). Countries and localities with healthy cooperative movements often have a successful umbrella NGO and/or public umbrella organization for cooperatives that provides a coherent policy framework for coops as well as relevant resources, services, training, and financing. Housing cooperative policy needs to introduce minimum standards and supportive mechanisms, but beyond that decisions about their form should be decentralized and flexible, allowing the heterogeneous groups that form coops to develop models that best suits their needs (Silver, 1991). A study of housing coops in Brazil found that the longest living coops were those that required ongoing cooperative management (Mercado, 2008). This is reflected in the proliferation and longevity of housing coops in Mumbai, India, where there is a tangible need to co-manage public spaces in the predominantly multifamily residence market (Sukumar 2001). Other ongoing activities present in long lasting coops include education, environmental management, income generation and micro-credit.


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The shortest lived coops in the Brazil study were those that formed solely to organize communities for land tenure negotiations and to collect savings for land purchase. These communities were typically composed of single detached dwellings, before and after resettlement (Mercado, 2008). The lack of cohesion may also have been because the members in these coops tended to be the poorest in that study. Rental coops avoid many of the pitfalls of private or public rental. Often the private market will not produce sufficient rental because it is not as profitable as other housing types, or because they don’t want to bear the cost and liability of ongoing management. Public rental projects often fall into disrepair because the government neglects their maintenance. Rental coops on the other hand don’t need to turn a profit to be a ‘good investment’ for members, and the coop is responsible for conducting or contracting out maintenance as necessary (Silver, 1991). Coops can also incorporate rent control or subsidized rental to the extent that the government are willing to subsidize the construction, maintenance and financing of the rental units (Mahadeva, 2006). In Australia rental coops ore preferred by those who don’t want to own their home or who can’t afford the down-payment necessary for private or cooperative housing. The federal government provides grants for the acquisition or construction of rental units by developers or rental coops. The Ministry of Housing holds the title and leases the property to a rental coop, that then provides subleases to tenants who must meet certain income criteria to be eligible (Danmole, 2004)

Form and construction of structures and infrastructure

1-STOREY DETACHED This is the norm for Plaridel. Both Plaridelenos and migrants from more remote regions are accustomed this low-density style of development. The land requirements of this construction pattern, however, make it unsuitable for Plaridel as it receives increasing pressure on its land base from residential, agricultural, industrial and commercial uses. Especially for low income households, the land value, infrastructure costs and taxation of large lots makes the lots unaffordable.

2-STOREY DETACHED OR ATTACHED This style of housing is popular in Plaridel’s higher density downtown and among its wealthier residents with large mansions. Obviously large mansions are unaffordable to most households in the short and long term, but 2-storey homes with a small footprint may help Plaridel meet its housing needs in the medium term. 2-storey homes are more acceptable to Plaridelenos than higher density alternatives (Interviews, Informal Settlers), and can accommodate space for the household, a home business, and rental space, within a relatively small footprint. This small footprint is vital in increasing the number of households accommodated per meter, and decreasing the cost of land for households. When houses are built in attached row-style, lot sizes can be reduced even further. Sitio Baco’od can serve as a preliminary example of density and placement, being more spacious and regular than the settlements along the Angat River, but more close knit and communal than the single detached rural suburbs of Plaridel. A good number of the houses in Sitio Baco’od also have a second storey. Many of the residents in Sitio Baco’od said they preferred their current neighborhood, with its closer family feel, to their previous one in Marie Grace, with its spread out arrangement (Interviews, Informal Settlers). The technology necessary to self-build 2-storey houses is also easily within the grasp of most informal settlers, with a bit of training and technical assistance (Interview, Pingol). It will be important to demonstrate how the construction of each floor can be done in stages, to accommodate for families that do not have the resources or desire to build both floors in the short term. 3+ STOREY OR APARTMENT BUILDING Multifamily dwellings may be necessary and desirable to accommodate more low income housing close to Plaridel’s downtown core. Many informal settlers are opposed to such high densities. This could be because they are unused to the housing type, because of the different social dynamic it creates, or because it removes freedom to construct and modify from the self-builder.


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These are all legitimate concerns and it should be up to informal settlers, once they have been fully informed of the alternatives, to reach their own decision about whether this housing type is appropriate. INFRASTRUCTURE AND PUBLIC FACILITIES Communities with few capital resources can speed the provision of infrastructure and facilities in their communities with bayanihan projects. Below is described an NGO formed by women slum-dwellers in India – the Mahila Milan – which shows how marginalized people can competently construct and manage resources that are important to their well being.

Case Study – Mahila Milan

The founders of the Mahila Milan Alliance believe that donors and governments prefer expensive projects as opposed to community-led ones because they reduce administrative costs, and allow employment of expensive in-house experts, opportunities for corruption, and the chance to champion causes to procure votes. After a long process of negotiation, the alliance was given the opportunity to construct and manage some trial toilet blocks for the equivalent amount given to contractors for construction. It took awhile for the illiterate women participating in Mahila Milan to develop confidence and master the skills necessary, but by the second community project they had gone from building half to three-quarters of the toilet blocks themselves. They used past observations to improve the construction and design of toilet blocks: building toilets back-to-back with plumbing in between to improve aesthetics and efficiency; building separate sections for children so they wouldn’t have to fight adults for a place in line; building an attached home for the caretaker to reduce the necessary wages; and building a gathering area outside to encourage stewardship and monitoring. Aspects of Mahila Milan which have been pivotal to the programs success include:

Community managed savings and credit groups which are glue that hold the program together

Survey and mapping sessions which facilitate

awareness, dialogue, planning and monitoring Pilot projects for experimentation and learning Exchange with similar organizations in Mumbai and in

other cities, which allows sharing of resources and experiences

Source: Burra (2003).

Preventative squatter methods

Though some immigration is natural for Plaridel, a huge or rapid influx will strain the economy and social services. The municipality needs to create positive and negative incentives for the relevant stakeholders to discourage new informal settlement. DISCOURAGING NEW INFORMAL SETTLERS Discouraging the formation of new informal settlements is a policy alternative often most acceptable to municipal officials, business people, homeowners and the middle class. This path presents a number of positive and negative incentives for different stakeholders, as explained below, such as barangay officials, private owners and informal settlers. Barangay officials:

Positive incentive: The municipality can tie new Barangay funds to surveying informal settlements and preventing new squatters.

Negative incentive: These funds can be revoked if clear performance guidelines aren’t met by the barangay

Private owners: Negative incentive: The municipality can enforce

business taxes and practices if the owner is charging squatters rent. This will decrease the incentive for private landowners to have squatters

Negative incentive: If the government is overseeing repayment of a private owner, on behalf of resettled squatters, the agreement can stipulate that the


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government will stop repayment if the private owner allows new squatters on their land.

Positive incentive: If the owner’s title is disputed, the

government can issue land title or forgive some taxes if the owner agrees to keep their land clear, and/or give some of it to public uses like park space. These privileges should be revoked if the owner does not honor the agreement.

Informal settlers: Positive incentive: give informal settlers free or

discounted land on the terms that they agree to keep it free of new squatter. Not honoring these terms should result in loss of subsidy or eviction.

ANTICIPATING NEW SQUATTING AREAS Bypass Highway: A bypass is currently being planned to speed and redirect traffic to and from Manila. The highway will have a high wire gate around it, monitored by the national department of public works and highways. This has successfully deterred informal settlement elsewhere in Bulacan (Interview with Lorie Capiral, Engineer’s Office). Canals and River: Squatters will continue to be attracted to the areas adjacent to the canals and Angat River because of their accessibility to water and transport routes. The municipality is encouraged to preemptively influence and negotiate formal land ownership throughout these areas to ensure that appropriate development takes place. For areas that are not prone to flooding and are more accessible, the municipality could try to negotiate transfer of land rights to low income families that would allow medium density settlement. In frequently flooded areas and areas that are more remote, the government could negotiate the transfer of land rights to adjacent private owners, or to low income families at very low densities. In both cases the tenure contract should stipulate that if the owner allows further settlement and densification on their land or interferes with canal irrigation, they will be penalized with loss of subsidy or eviction. In effect, this makes the new owners the stewards of this land. Idle industrial land: The idle industrial lands most likely to be settled are adjacent to the secondary canals, and so

the same policies as above apply. However the government will have to negotiate ownership from the private owners of the land.

Encourage the informal use of idle industrial lands for agricultural since it discourages its use by settlers

Issue a proclamation that squatters on industrial lands will receive no compensation or resettlement when that land is necessary

ANTICIPATING NEED FOR RENTAL Many of the squatters in Plaridel are currently living in an informal rental arrangement because it is the only housing to which they have access or because they prefer that tenure type because of its small cost (in the short term) and flexibility. This need for rental will continue and increase as more immigrants arrive to Plaridel and especially if some informal settlements, which are currently providing rental, are resettled and demolished. The municipality should facilitate the provision of formal rental, and informal small-scale rental in formal settlements, to relieve pressure on the informal settlements in Plaridel. A rental board could keep track of vacancies in formal

and semi-formal rental market

The municipality could provide incentives for coops to produce rental, possibly by making some land available only for that use

Creating jobs through IS programs

LINKING JOBS TO RESIDENTIAL LOCATIONS Settlers close to the new cemetery could lease

cemetery land in medium term for agriculture

Squatters or settlers near MRF sites could sort waste and manage composting

Squatters and settlers in each neighborhood could

retain and manage the most ‘valuable’ of their own waste – recyclables for sale and compost for sale and community use.


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MIXED USE DEVELOPMENT Plaridel has a strong presence of a sari-sari stores and other intermixed commercial and residential uses. The municipality needs to protect this mixed use in building codes for informal settlements and future low-income settlements. These codes need to allow for commercial, light industry and office space within residential areas, especially on the ground floor facing the street. The city needs to design a special business permit for home businesses which is not as demanding in terms of cost and documentation. This will encourage people to register their businesses so the city can better monitor economic activity, and business people can better access assistance and services such as loans and training. RENTAL Plaridel’s strong informal rental market fills the gap created by the Philippines’ rents controls. The rent controls of the national government only apply to rental of more than one room (Interview, Pascua). The municipality can advocate for the informal rental market by promoting 2-storey low-income settlements which provide opportunity for rental space. They can also provide a municipal registry where renters can post their contact information and vacancies, to lubricate the market. The municipality can also promote rental in coops by offering land or subsidies to coops that will produce a minimum proportion of rental units SAVINGS AND LENDING Informal settlers, whether they are being resettled of not, can be trained in how to start savings and loans schemes in their community. This will both create jobs for those managing the schemes, and stimulate commerce in the community due to the influx of capital. In order to promote savings and lending. At least one person at the municipality should specialize in money management, accounting, and savings and loan schemes for the urban poor. They will be responsible for passing this information along to community members and possibly training community members in how to be trainers themselves.

The municipality could also make available small loans to those that want to start a savings and/or loan scheme. Participating in training should be prerequisite to receiving loans. Once savings schemes meet certain savings targets they could be eligible for larger loans from the municipality. At least one person or department at the municipality could be responsible for collecting loan repayment, overseeing the activity of savings groups, and referring people for further training and information where necessary. CONSTRUCTION Informal settlers, whether they are being resettled of not, can be trained in how to plan and perform upgrades and construction of homes, public facilities and infrastructure, and about proper building regulations. This can indirectly improve household welfare by allowing upgrades to existing dwellings or infrastructure, and allowing the construction of new high quality dwellings, public facilities and infrastructure. It can directly create jobs by giving trainees to skills and knowledge to form construction companies that could operate in the formal market. It can also create jobs in resettlement projects by allowing those being resettled to fulfill all or some of the labour requirements for constructing the built environment in their new settlement. At least one person at the municipality should specialize in building regulations and construction materials, technique and designs for informal settlement and resettlement projects (there may already be someone doing this). They will be responsible for passing this information along to community members and possibly training community members in how to be trainers themselves. The municipality could also make available materials, for construction and upgrading, to those that participated in training and have presented a feasible project plan. Priority could be given for material for basic infrastructure such as water and sewage infrastructure, toilet facilities, sidewalks and roads. At least one person or department at the municipality should be responsible for reviewing and approving plans,


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distributing materials, making sure project plans were followed and that structures are safe, and referring people to further training and information where necessary. ENTREPRENEURISM Informal settlers, whether they are being resettled of not, can be introduced to different business types (sari-sari, rental, crafts, food processing or services, daycare, pedicab, etc.), and structures (self-employed, company, cooperative), and to the advantages and disadvantages of each. They can also be trained in particular management and technical skills necessary for starting such businesses. At least one person or department at the municipality should be in charge of training informal settlers in business management and skills, and possibly training community trainers (there may already be someone at the municipality doing this). It is ideal if the urban poor choose to register their businesses so that the municipality has a better understanding of its commercial activity, and can tax those businesses as they grow over time. Currently many small businesses do not register with the city because there are few benefits to doing so and some costs (Interview, Pascua). The city could introduce legislation eliminating or reducing permit and tax fees for small businesses, and offer access to services such as loans and training, to encourage small business to register. At least one person or department at the municipality should be responsible for monitoring and collecting information about the commercial activity in informal settlement and resettlements, monitoring and collecting any loans given to entrepreneurs, and also referring people to further training and information where necessary. WASTE MANAGEMENT Informal settlers, whether they are being resettled of not, can be trained in the standards and methods of onsite segregation and waste management. This could create jobs if community members create their own compost company, or if the government pays the community to manage its own organic wastes. If the community retains some inorganic wastes these could also be used in craft

production (i.e. plastic sculptures or rugs, or bike construction with spare parts). At least one person or department at the municipality should be responsible for training community members in waste management, and possibly training some community trainers. The municipality could also make available startup loans for communities doing onsite management of organic or inorganic wastes. Attending training and a preparing a project plan should be prerequisite to receiving such loans. At least one person or department at the municipality could be responsible for reviewing and approving project plans, monitoring and collecting loans, monitoring waste management practices, and referring people to further training and information where necessary. TIERED TRAINING A tiered training scheme can be used for any of the suggested programs which involve training or education. The tiered system can reach a large number of people at low cost. In this system all those that receive training pay no fee, but must prepare a plan to lead their own training seminar in the near future as ‘payment’ for their own training. This plan could include the date and venue of the future training seminar and the names and signatures of those that will attend. To ensure that these seminars are in fact executed, representatives from the municipality or Barangay could visit the seminars. The knowledge of trainers will diffuse throughout the community, in a wider and wider net of participants, as long as each new trainer asks for their participants to prepare a plan to train others as ‘payment’.


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Part III Discussion and Recommendations

Summary of Findings: Key factors influencing the current situation

Building on what is understood as the unique local context of the municipality, including its particular institutional arrangements, policy framework, economic reality and socio-political relations, this report discusses a number of tools and procedures available for approaching the issue of housing for the poor in Plaridel. What follows is an overview of the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats in relation to the current context and potential approaches as identified throughout this report. A number of recommendations are proposed based on this analysis.

Previous to the completion of the report and elaboration of the final recommendations, preliminary findings were presented to Plaridel’s municipal council during an open forum. This opportunity allowed municipal councillors, staff and community members to provide their views and feedback on the proposed approaches. Discussing these findings and potential recommendations proved to be an important component in the process of understanding the limitations and possibilities of the municipality, and proposing more realistic courses of action.

WHAT ARE PLARIDEL’S STRENGTHS?

Committed leadership. The mayor, municipal team, many barangay officials and community leaders are eager to promote change. This represents a strong basis from which to start addressing the housing needs of the urban poor population.

Enabling policy and legislative framework. The 1991 Local Government Code (RA 7160) devolves the functions of shelter and socialised housing to the local government units, while the Urban Development and Housing Act (RA 7279) provides direction for meeting the housing needs of the urban poor. The Local Housing Board Act now mandates the development of a Housing Board, which would be the responsible

body for addressing the shelter concerns of the municipality.

Strong decentralized structure at the barangay level allowing a close relationship between citizens and the government structure. This relationship is important for the promotion of responsive governance in the region.

The barangay already has initiatives in place to respond to the needs of the population such as training and workshops, health care and day care provision, assistance to families at risk during the flood season and in case of disaster and crisis.

Many residents are engaged in barangay activities and community organization initiatives, demonstrating that there is a strong culture of volunteerism already in place.

There is also a strong culture of cooperativism in the province of Bulacan and in Plaridel. Cooperatives have been successful in a variety of sectors including farming and agriculture, banking, credit and investments, as well as “multipurpose”.

Communities living in informal settlements seem solidified and often vibrant. The communities are composed of self-motivated and resourceful people who engage in a variety of livelihood activities and seem very adaptable to different demands.

Many youth residing in the informal settlements are engaged in active organizations. They are energetic and bright people with a great potential to effect positive change.

WHAT ARE PLARIDEL’S WEAKNESSES?

The complete absence of a strategic housing planning initiative to date implies that much of what has been done has not been part of a comprehensive plan of action. This has led to the implementation of isolated schemes that have not generated a significant impact on the overall housing situation in the region.

The lack of a municipal housing board represents a significant barrier for action. Without the housing board there is no designated body to overlook housing issues exclusively, which prevents the numerous


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available resources from being channeled from other levels of government and housing organizations.

The municipality expressed a major concern with the lack of budget to conduct housing initiatives. Without budget being allocated exclusively and consistently to housing, it is very unlikely that actions can be sustained in the long-run.

The lack of data collection efforts to date implies that there is no consistent and comprehensive information to build upon when developing new programs and making decisions with regards to housing and informal settlements. A reliable land title inventory covering the entire municipality is also lacking.

Political clashes in some barangays and a lack of transparency continue to represent a barrier for progressive changes in many cases. The culture of political patriarchy ? that has developed in the Philippines is still visible in Plaridel. Informal settlements can even represent a political benefit in some cases, as many residents will accept benefits in exchange for votes when faced with vulnerability and hardship.

Even though the residents of informal settlements are committed and engaged, vulnerability due to an absence of secure tenure and jobs, lack of education and poor health, often force residents to respond to their immediate needs, leaving them with no opportunity to engage in longer-term thinking and move up the socio-economic ladder.

A concern expressed by the municipality in particular is the development of a “culture of poverty” in Plaridel. The assistance and services provided by the barangays to the poorer populations is believed to make people dependent and reliant on such services.

Many of the settlements have existed for over ten or even twenty years. This implies that the newer generations were born in the settlements and have developed strong roots in those places. The way they live has also been shaped by the reality they face in the settlements. This could be a significant factor if people were to be relocated and had to adjust to a new reality.

Housing is not an isolated aspect of cities; it is rather very much connected to other aspects of the socio-economic and political realities that shape a region. The success of a housing strategy therefore also depends strongly on the efficiency and efficacy of services and other components of the larger system.

Even though much seemed to be omitted with regards to crime, drugs and prostitution, these factors are present in the reality of Plaridel and affect the poorer populations most directly and to a much larger extent than openly discussed.

Plaridel’s municipal departments and offices work in isolation, with minimal (if no) coordination and communication between them. A lack of streamlining of data, resources and initiatives, can mean duplication of work, “a culture of blame”, and passing on of responsibilities, with no one taking them on. In such an environment, the municipality’s work is crippled.

WHAT ARE THE OPPORTUNITIES?

Many resources are available and there is a strong support of national structures, laws, policies and guidelines particularly in supporting the creation and functioning of a municipal housing board. The board would enable, among many other functions, the creation of guidelines and protocols, collection of statistics and data generation, legal aid, negotiation on behalf of informal settlers, monitoring the collection of money and other financial transactions, and prevention of new squatter settlements.

Even though land is scarce, it has not yet been exhausted and some land is available in the region for relocation. A large parcel of land was purchased by the municipality for a new cemetery and part of this land is in the process of being allocated for a socialized housing project.

Decisions around land conversion and land use planning are being made and will guide the decisions and courses of action in the coming years. This represents a crucial opportunity for establishing necessary priorities with regards to land allocation for housing programs.


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Housing can also be thought of as a provider of employment opportunities to a large number of skilled and unskilled workers (NEDA, 2004). A low cost housing unit on average requires eight people working for three weeks (NEDA, 2004).

Residents are paying rent within an informal system of transactions, causing a pervasive effect on the system. However, this demonstrates that people do have the ability to pay rent. This ability could be channeled into productive ends such as savings, ownership or productive capital.

Many successful housing schemes count on cooperative principles. The local culture of cooperativism, as mentioned earlier, represents a good opportunity for exploring these schemes further.

Many successful savings projects are already in place. These could be expanded and knowledge of successful practices could be shared.

People are willing to learn and there are many good trainers, teachers and potential volunteers (such as students, for example, who long for internship opportunities to build up their work experience). Education and training opportunities could be expanded and made more accessible through facilities, regular sessions, outreach, and tiered teachers (junior and informal trainees). The skills of volunteers could also be upgraded.

Building upon the already established relationship between the barangay staff and the community could bring significant benefits to the community and to the municipality. More training and education would enhance current activities and could equip the community with the tools to become more independent and self-reliant.

There are man experiences to be learned from in the region, however the lack of mobilization towards documenting housing initiatives to date prevents lessons and successes from being shared.

There are many available resources and opportunities that could be taken advantage of through the development of a range of important partnerships.

These resources if tackled would require little budget commitment from the municipality.

WHAT ARE THE THREATS?

Uncertainty around budget availability and budget cuts represents a major concern as the provision of social services such as housing depends largely on adequate budget allocation. Dependency on external sources of funding is often accompanied by uncertainty around its sustainability, which could hinder long-term perspectives from being achieved.

The municipality of Plaridel is largely vulnerable to regional, national and global forces. Local governments can only exert so much influence, and therefore the vulnerability to changes in larger spheres can only be prevented or managed to a certain extent.

Future political changes and the end of this mayor’s term in office could mean that new priorities may be established in the future. Continuity in the provision of adequate social services depends on the political climate and will: unpredictability around politics could represent a significant threat.

Patriarchy represents a major barrier to change. In Plaridel, traditional power structures and the privileging of particular political interests are still a prevailing reality. Families who have traditionally owned large parcels of land often “rent” informally to squatters who are occupying these areas.

If successful strategies are implemented and the availability of social housing increases, it is possible that residents from neighboring municipalities, or migrants from further away in the Philippines, will choose to relocate to Plaridel in search of better opportunities. This could drive up the demand for housing once again, and lead to further growth of informal settlements.

The speed at which land has been converted from agricultural into industrial and other uses has meant that the pattern of land use has changed dramatically in Plaridel in the past years. Food security could represent a significant threat, affecting the poorest populations most severely, particularly as peak oil and climate change become increasingly real.


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The threats posed by natural disasters already affect the daily lives of many residents of Plaridel. The risks associated with flooding, soil erosion and other environmental hazards, often come at unpredictable times and could present a major challenge for the municipality if it is not prepared to mitigate these risks and assist the population.

Recommendations and Resources

The proposed recommendations aspire to build upon the strengths and opportunities identified above, while mitigating the weaknesses and threats. The recommendations were categorized according to their priority and feasibility and encompass the short, medium and long-terms. The short-term includes initiatives to be undertaken as soon as possible or within the mayor’s current term in office. These initiatives will build the grounds for future actions. Medium-term actions are those to be undertaken in the next three to five years, while the current mayor is still in office. Long-term actions include objectives to be achieved after this five-year period, although the thinking around them should start earlier that that. Figure 6 demonstrates how the short, medium and long-terms are connected within the same “circle”, where short-term actions enable medium-term actions, which in turn enable the achievement of long-term objectives.

A detailed description of the resources necessary for conducting the proposed actions is available in Appendices.

FIGURE 6: CONNECTION BETWEEN SHORT, MEDIUM

AND LONG TERM PROPOSED ACTIONS

Short-term actions

Allocation OF RESPONSIBILITY OVER HOUSING ISSUES

As mentioned above, currently, no one within the municipality is responsible for overseeing housing issues. This prevents initiatives from being undertaken and, most importantly, it prevents resources that are available from different government bodies and organizations, which would enable future actions, from being allocated to housing. The initial steps to be undertaken in the short-term thus will largely depend on the delegation of responsibilities to a specific party.

The municipality expressed concern about the availability of funds to be allocated to housing initiatives. This lack of funds makes it difficult for the municipality to hire additional staff or invest in the necessary infrastructure to administer the initial steps geared towards a housing strategy.

With these factors in mind, a first step would entail using alternative means that would not require a significant commitment in terms of the municipal budget. Two initial actions could be undertaken in this respect:

Delegate a person among current municipal staff/officers to oversee housing issues in the short-term.

Hire a student intern skilled at fundraising and grant proposal writing to work under the responsibility of this person. This student would work to make initial contacts and submit the first funding proposals.

ADDRESS OR CONTINUE ADDRESSING POPULATION’S BASIC

NEEDS

The municipality is already tackling a number of important areas related to meeting the population’s basic needs. Maintaining and enhancing current efforts should be a continuous priority of the municipality. Initiatives such as livelihood, health and nutrition programs, garbage collection, water, electricity and sanitation, and daycare provision should continue to be a prime concern in the municipal agenda. Those areas that are currently being under-serviced, such as some informal settlement areas, should be prioritized. Ensuring consistency in the delivery of such services is also important.

LLon

Basic needs

Capacity & skills

Social preparation

Set-up partnerships

Survey & land inventory

Update CLUP

Housing board

LongTermMedium

TermShortTerm

Solidify Housing

Board & partnerships

Local Housing Program

Feasibility study Agnaya

Resettle those at risk

Land titling

Micro- Cosms

Regional & nationalstrategies


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Capacity BUILDING AND DEVELOPMENT OF SKILLS WITHIN THE

MUNICIPALITY

Different municipal departments in Plaridel, particularly the planning office, indicated that capacity and specific technical and social planning skills need to be enhanced or outright developed. Similarly, organizational and data management skills could benefit from further development, in order to streamline housing-related activities and resources, and to ensure the effective implementation of a housing and urban poor programme.

The municipality would be able to enhance capacity and skills by taking advantage of a number of bodies, whose work often revolves around capacity-building.

The following resources are available (for details on the different organizations, please see Appendices):

Province

Alterplan

Universities and academic partners

Local Government Academy & training centres

NHA, HLURB

INVEST IN SOCIAL PREPARATION

The process of social preparation entails conducting activities to help residents better adjust to future initiatives that will both affect their lives and will require their participation and engagement, such as relocation or upgrading, for example. The earlier social preparation activities are undertaken, the more inclined residents will be to adjust to and support these activities. Promoting community organizing, investing in activities that generate savings and credit opportunities for residents, and providing adequate training (e.g. on maintaining documentation on payments made, monitoring, formation of associations, etc.) to prepare residents are examples of social preparation efforts.

A number of NGOs and civil society actors have considerable experience in such activities, and the municipality should tap into these bodies, who often have better contact with informal settlers and are better equipped to undertake such processes.

Resources include:

Religious organizations (e.g. Caritas and Gawad Kalinga), and in Plaridel itself St. James’ Church (through Father Dennis Espejo), which has started working with a number of families in Dap Dap who may be resettled in the future

Homeless People’s Federation of the Philippines (see Case Study 4 in section Learning from Case Studies, Part II).

SET-UP PARTNERSHIPS

The establishment of partnerships is a crucial step to be undertaken in the short-term. Through these partnerships the municipality will be able to count on expertise, training and funding in order to assist it develop its own administrative structure. A variety of public, private and not-for-profit organizations exist to provide support to the municipality.

The following is a list of potential partners:

Public

NHA

HUDCC

NHMFC-CMP

Land Bank of the Philippines

Development Bank of the Philippines

(International) donor agencies

Private

Lopez Group

Non-profit

Gawad Kalinga

Caritas

Alterplan

Habitat for Humanity

SURVEY & LAND INVENTORY


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The Urban Development and Housing Act 1992 mandates that a survey and land inventory is undertaken in each municipality, in order to inform the Comprehensive and Land Use Plans, as well as to identify lands that could be allocated to resettlement, socialized housing or other land uses. A major component of a land survey and inventory is the collection of baseline data, which is currently lacking in Plaridel. A number of partners could assist the municipality in undertaking this process (see below), and detailed guidelines are outlined in the LGU Guidebook (HUDCC, 2008). As mentioned above, the research capacity and technical skills of municipal staff would need to be enhanced.

Resources:

Universities

Alterplan

LGU Guidebook (HUDCC, 2008)

UPDATE CLUP

The current CLUP the municipality is working with (Municipality of Plaridel, 2002) still has to be approved by the Province and has a number of shortcomings, including the fact it does not use a comprehensive data set (due to the absence of a land survey and inventory). The data it uses is furthermore outdated. Additionally, the CLUP was not developed in a very inclusive and participatory manner, failing to widely consult the population. As the CLUP guidelines recommend (HLURB, 2007), the CLUP should provide an in-depth report on the current and projected housing situation in the municipality. In the short term we therefore recommend urgently updating the CLUP. For more information that could aid in the updating of the housing information in the current (and future) CLUPs, please see Appendix 2.

Resources:

CLUP Guidebook (HLURB, 2007)

Universities

HOUSING BOARD

It is crucial for the Plaridel municipality to form a Housing Board in order to have a body responsible for housing and urban poor issues. The Local Housing Board Act was revised in 2008, and provides detailed guidelines on the

formation and functions of a housing board (see Legal and policy framework above, and Appendices).

As mentioned in recommendation 1, in order to overcome the current budget shortfall as regards the set-up of a housing board, it would already be sufficient to charge one currently employed staff member with the housing board’s main and most urgent functions.

Resources:

Bulacan Provincial Housing Board (the Province could assist Plaridel, since it has recently set up a housing board)

National Agencies (e.g. NHA, HUDCC, etc.)


Shelter Provision Resource Kit (PC-LGSP et al., 2005)

Medium-term actions

SOLIDIFY HOUSING BOARD AND PARTNERSHIPS

The efforts that were initiated in the short-term should be sustained, and the number and strength of partnerships developed up to that point should be expanded. At this stage the partnerships could be used to support the creation of a Special Housing Fund (to finance housing projects, see HUDCC, 2008) and of a Local Housing Office (see Appendix 1).

LOCAL HOUSING PROGRAM

A Local Housing Programme lies at the basis of all housing and resettlement decisions (GoP, 2008; HUDCC, 2008). This should include a Local Shelter Plan, which identifies available sites and lands for resettlement, financing options, a developer for the project, etc. (detailed guidelines are available to assist the municipality in this process, see Appendix 1). At this stage beneficiaries should be surveyed and further organised through social preparation programmes. Plaridel will also need to consider at this point the option of upgrading (rather than resettling) certain settlements, especially those where the population is not at risk of flooding or situated in precarious areas.


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Resources:


Shelter Provision Resource Kit (PC-LGSP et al., 2005)

FEASIBILITY STUDY: AGNAYA

The municipality recently purchased a large parcel of land that was initially intended to accommodate the new Plaridel cemetery. Given its allocated size is too large, the mayor has expressed interest in allocating a portion of this land (approx. 12,000 square meters) to socialised housing. We strongly encourage this option.

Before the resettlement is undertaken, the technical, financial, environmental and market feasibility of the process should be researched. Once again, the municipality could benefit from the partnerships that will have been established by this stage, and the available resources, including very detailed guidelines that can guide the process.

These resources include:


Alterplan

Universities

RESETTLE THOSE AT RISK

The Urban Development and Housing Act (UDHA, 1992) mandates that populations who live in risky or precarious areas (or within a certain distance from these) are resettled within two years of the enactment of the UDHA (i.e. 1994). In Plaridel, the main area in question is the land along the Angat River, which is heavily populated, and where the squatters often suffer from flooding. Areas that are not at as risk include the lands along the NIA canals and the PNR. We thus recommend that those along the Angat River are resettled as early as possible in the medium term, in order to comply with the UDHA, 1992.

Resources that could assist in the process include:

Gawad Kalinga

Caritas

Urban poor associations

Housing coops

Habitat for Humanity

St. James’ Church (Father Dennis)

LAND TITLING

Negotiation with private owners by Angat River and canals

Land Registration Authority

Long-term actions

REGIONAL AND NATIONAL STRATEGIES

All efforts and initiatives developed in the short and medium terms should be built upon and consolidated in the long-run. Plaridel is currently positioned in a situation of vulnerability in terms of external pressures. Without the support of any formal or institutionalized housing structure, the municipality responds not only to internal pressures and challenges but also to regional and national policies and strategies in a largely reactive manner.

Plaridel’s lack of planning and coordination around housing prevents the municipality from articulating its own interests among different levels of government, bodies and organizations. If smaller steps are accomplished in the short-term, leading to a phase of strengthening and consolidation in the medium and long terms, Plaridel should be able to build a solid and well-founded housing board and administrative structure. This will allow the municipality to articulate its own interests particularly in terms of regional and national strategies. At this stage the municipality should also be able to map and build upon the connections between its housing planning strategies and other sectors including, among others, education, health, environmental protection and economic development.

Cases in Plaridel

MICROCOSMS

In this section, the potential long term redevelopment plans for several primary informal settlement areas are addressed. These recommendations are by no means


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prescriptive, and are merely included to illustrate how the municipality might one day move forward, in light of the many policy options and observations discussed in Part II. Obviously a great deal more data gathering, consultation, and involvement with civil and NGO actors is necessary before the municipality moves forward with any plans for upgrading or resettlement.

Railway track

CURRENT USE

Plaridel’s railway line hasn’t been active since the 1970s, and a road is paved where its tracks were removed, making it an accessible place for informal settlers.

ENVIRONMENT

The railway’s environment is not sensitive or dangerous for settlers.

SETTLEMENTS

The settlements are not overcrowded and have a linear organization, with generally good infrastructures and accessibility to services and amenities

PLANNED USE

Railway lines are currently being reinstalled in nearby parts of Luzon, and municipal staff in Plaridel’s Engineering and Planning Departments expect that the Plaridel line could be revived anywhere from 5 to 20 years from now (Interviews, Lori, Mel, Pingol)

U OR R (UPGRADING OR RESETTLEMENT):

Since the land might be needed for public infrastructure in the near future it is not suitable for upgrading. Though the financial responsibility of resettlement would rest on the National Railway, the process might have better results for the municipality and the settlers themselves if the municipality was capable of implementing the resettlement themselves with funding from the Federal government.

RECOMMENDATIONS:

Develop the municipality’s capacity to facilitate resettlement project, so that municipality can manage the process on behalf of, and with funding from, the federal government if the need arises.

Irrigation canal

CURRENT USE

The canals are all used for irrigating surrounding agricultural lands.

ENVIRONMENT

The main danger posed by the canals to the settlers is the mild flooding which occurs when the dam is released. The main dangers the settlers pose to the infrastructure and environment are: blocking the canal with waste or with infill to construct buildings; and taking up prime agricultural land which is flooded with fertile soil when the canals overflow.

SETTLEMENTS

The informal settlements adjacent to these canals are often oriented parallel to the canal, in a much more rational and spacious fashion than those adjacent to the Angat River.

U OR R (UPGRADING OR RESETTLEMENT):

The canal obstructions and mild flooding experienced by settlers can be rectified with minimal upgrading: instituting waste management; relocating structures currently over the canal; constructing a dyke to protect the settlement; and reclaiming land or increasing the height of foundations under buildings. Unfortunately the reality of using prime agricultural land for residential purposes is an ongoing problem. Therefore canal settlements are a possible site for upgrading and regularization of title, but they are not ideal.

EVIDENCE

In a settlement extending parallel to a canal in Tabang, residents mostly expressed a desire to be moved since they all experienced severe flooding of 1-2 ft, several times a year. Some had built up the floor or their house to mitigate this but not all. Also many houses were built partially or fully over the canal itself. In the formal resettlement of Sitio Baco’od which extends away from the canal, only those houses adjacent to the canal experienced flooding, and even that had been greatly


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diminished since the paving of a walkway directly along the canal, which acted as a partial dyke. There were also no structures built over or in the canal in Sitio Baco’od, except for a small paved spit used for washing clothes.

RECOMMENDATIONS

Upgrading is advisable in the short and medium term, to prevent the worst interferences with canals and flooding of communities. Negotiation of land titles is appropriate but only of a density that is appropriate. In prime agricultural lands remote from urban environments the government may seek to award title to adjacent landowners, or to a small number of urban poor, with that ownership contingent on the ability of the owner to keep the land clear. Canals closer to the urban areas might be appropriate for higher densities, contingent on the owners keeping the canals clear of obstructions. Along secondary canals, private ownership can be negotiated right up to the canal, but along primary NIA (National Irrigation Administration) canals, NIA has not been known to issue land titles for the right-of-way area of approximately 15m on either side of the canals (Interview, Lori). In the case of primary NIA, the municipality could negotiate land titles directly adjacent to this right-of-way, contingent on the owner’s ability to keep the right-of-way clear. This would leave the area clear to build a road when a sufficient density of residents is reached.

Angat River

Owner: The dyke, and the easement which extend for 50m on either side of the dyke, is owned by the NIA For road right of way is 10, 15 and 20m maxim minimum right of way. Dyke is 50m National ordinance, department public roads and highways. PRCS, papanga river control system(Pingol) Location: *** you can’t build 20m from the river, there is soil erosion With Department of agrarian reform

CURRENT USE

The land adjacent to the Angat River, especially close to the city core in Banga I, Banga II and Parulan, is heavily populated with informal settlers. These residents use the

river for growing water loving crops like kang-kong, and fishing.

ENVIRONMENT

Settlers experience severe flooding during rainy season when the dam is released. Some houses are destroyed and others damaged and residents are forced to live with friends, relatives, and in public facilities like schools, churches, barangay halls and medical clinics, for up to a week. The damage to life and property also requires emergency services from the municipality and Barangays. Vulnerability is geographically and topographically dependent and many homes are barely affected.

SETTLEMENTS

The banks of the Angat River close to Plaridel’s core are the most populated because they provide the most opportunity for the town’s poor to live close to job opportunities, commercial areas and amenities like schools and health services. The settlements closest to the river in Banga 1, Banga 2, and Parulan, are the most overcrowded, irregularly built, and poorly serviced with infrastructure. This is probably due to a confluence of factors: These homes are the most disturbed and destroyed seasonally by floods; as dangerous homes they are the least valuable; the poorest members can only afford rent in this dangerous area; transients or new migrants may be prevalent since they may have less resources, be more willing to accept the short term risk of disturbance, and also may be less likely to invest in community infrastructure. For perhaps many of the opposite reasons, those settlements close to and behind the dyke are more regular, un-crowded and better serviced.

PLANNED USE

There is no planned use for these lands, since the dyke (50m) and river easements (20m) preclude any official development of these lands.

RECOMMENDATIONS

The lands adjacent to the Angat River need to be assessed based on their susceptibility to flooding in the short, medium and long term, taking account of future riverbank erosion. This assessment could consist of


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engineering, geographic or GIS analysis, as well as community mapping sessions in which residents document where flood-lines have been and how all parts of their neighborhoods have been more or less affected. The entire area should also undergo a land use planning process, with extensive consultation, to determine how informal and formal residents or Plaridel want this core part of their municipality to be used. These uses could include: recreation and park; a waterfront open-air public market; agriculture; fishing; touristic boating; a floating restaurant; and residential. All of these uses could be mixed throughout the area adjacent to Angat River, based on what formal and informal residents of Plaridel feel is most appropriate. It is likely that much of the shoreline will require evacuation and the municipality will have to develop a program that can achieve this with the greatest benefit to the informal settlers that is politically and economically feasible, and that can prevent resettlement of the evacuated areas. If some areas are deemed acceptable for long term residential use then a process of upgrading can begin in those areas. This could involve anything from the provision of roads and electricity, to the construction of

new, medium density housing. Anything from the issuing of private land titles, to the negotiation of land parcel transfers by housing cooperatives. In the short and medium term the municipality needs to focus on building up the capacity of its administration, and the informal settlers themselves, to participate in livelihood, upgrading and resettlement projects. If this capacity is built in earnest than Plaridel will eventually be able to move towards development of a city that all its residents can be happy and proud to be a part of. Perhaps one day the Angat River, instead of being a source of tension and disagreement in the city, will be somewhere where residents can come together to wander the shopping streets, see children play in the park, eat some fried fish that was caught in the river, and watch the local residents work in their community garden.

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The process and steps that should be followed for formulating a local shelter plan are provided, with detailed guidelines on data gathering, situation analysis, and setting of goals and objectives. A feasibility study should be undertaken, addressing the legal mandate of the LGU in developing the project, detailing the socio-economic profile of the LGU and the technical, financial, environmental (through an EIA) and market feasibility of the project. Information on how to select a site is provided, with modes of land acquisition, ways to research land titling issues, ways to select and organize beneficiaries, etc. Funding sources that the LGU can tap for meeting its housing needs are also listed.

In addition, a resource kit for assisting LGUs meet growing housing demand and deal with the problem of homelessness has been developed (PC-LGSP et al., 2005), which can further assist in the creation of a housing board and design of a shelter plan. The guide can be obtained at the DILG Local Governance Resource Centre, or the HUDCC.

Step by step procedures for implementing a resettlement project, a Community Mortgage Programme (CMP) and a low-cost housing project are identified in HUDCC (2008), starting from pre- to post-implementation.

Sources:

NEDA - National Economic and Development Authority. 2004. Medium-Term Philippine Development Plan 2004-2010. NEDA: Manila.

Available online: http://www.gov.ph/documents/MTPDP%202004-2010%20NEDA%20v11-12.pdf

HUDCC. 2008. Local Government Unit Guidebook.

Philippines-Canada Local Government Support Programme (LGSP), Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council (HUDCC) and Gawad Kalinga – Couples for Christ (GK-CFC). 2005. Strengthening Capacities and Broadening Options for Shelter Provision: A Resource Kit for Local Government.

2. Directions for the Municipality of Plaridel’s Comprehensive Land Use Plan

Preparation of the Comprehensive Land Use Plan (CLUP) emphasizes the achievement of an improved quality of life of communities and the importance of involving, through data provision and input of views and concerns, the marginalized and disadvantaged sectors within a municipality. The right and capacity of the marginalized to identify and prioritise their needs is recognized. It is crucial to undertake a comprehensive and thorough CLUP, as programmes and projects identified within it will feed into the Comprehensive Development Plans (HLURB, 2007).

PLARIDEL’S CLUP

The CLUP (2002-2012) developed by the Plaridel Municipality in early 2000 still remains to be approved, and is in need of revisions, given the data it uses are outdated and certain issues, such as housing, were not developed in the depth required to make it a strong basis from which to proceed with a municipal development plan. Furthermore, it was not developed in a fully participatory manner, as demanded by the Housing and Land Use Regulatory Board - HLURB (2007). It is therefore recommended that the CLUP Guidebook (HLURB, 2007) is used to create a revised CLUP. In case of need, HLURB can provide training assistance. We also suggest that (planning) student interns are used to assist with data collection and surveying.

Analyzing social variables within one’s municipality can pave the way towards improving a community’s level of human development. Analyzing causes and effects can assist in devising interventions that will improve service delivery and thus people’s well-being. The housing situation, measured in terms of housing needs, is one crucial issue that should be analysed in an integrated and participatory manner.

KEY INFORMATION TO BE GATHERED WOULD INCLUDE:

Housing Situation for the Last Three Censal Years

Housing Backlog for a particular year

Informal Settlements Areas for a particular year

Resettlement Areas for a particular year

Housing Facilities and Utilities Situation for a particular year


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Owner of Households in Occupied Housing Units by Tenure Status of Housing Units and

Lots for a particular year

Occupied Housing Units by Condition (State Of Repair) of the Building and Year Built

Inventory of Potential Lands for Housing for a particular year

Current and Projected Housing Need

HLURB (2007) then recommends determining community needs, aspirations and issues, using a range of participatory tools, for which few guiding questions are provided. A report of the housing situation should then follow, elaborating on the ratio of households to occupied housing units (which indicate whether more than one household occupies a unit, i.e. presence of double-up households); number of occupants per housing unit; quality of construction material; needs of households in terms of tenure status, access to services (water, power, garbage disposal, roads, sanitation); needs for structure improvement or repair; location and extent of blighted or squatter areas, or those in risky or environmentally critical areas.

A section on current and projected needs should be presented in terms of housing, land requirements, infrastructure, financing – with consideration of the LGU’s priorities and vision as regards land allocation and use.

The LGU could then present the key issues, problems and concerns of the housing sector and their implications (based on data gathered and consultations); and could recommend prioritized interventions.

Source:

Housing and Land Use Regulatory Board - HLURB. 2007. CLUP Guidebook – A Guide to Sectoral Studies in the CLUP Preparation. Volume 2. Quezon City: HLURB.

3. Potential Partners and Available Resources

Public bodies

THE NATIONAL HOUSING AUTHORITY (NHA)

According to the 1992 Urban Development and Housing Act, the NHA shall assist in implementing urban development and housing programmes, seeking to increase LGU’s capacity in terms of community organization, negotiations with landowners, development plan preparation, etc. According to Executive Order No. 90, NHA is the sole government body involved in direct shelter production, focusing on providing housing to the lowest third of urban income earners, through upgrading, relocation, and housing construction, land tenurial assistance, community land-acquisition support, cooperative housing, emergency housing assistance, etc. (NEDA, 2004). It also carries out programmes to improve blighted areas, and assists the private sector involved in low-cost housing projects. The NHA administers the Government’s Resettlement/ Relocation programme, which involves acquiring land for the resettlement of people who will be affected by infrastructure projects (e.g. the Northrail and Rail Linkage projects) or who live in dangerous areas, such as along railway lines, highways, rivers, etc. NHA’s socialized housing targets for the 2005-2010 period (spread between resettlement, slum upgrading, sites and services, core housing and community-based housing) are a total of 294,200 units, at a cost of PHP 27,376 million (NEDA, 2004). The NHA can provide LGUs with financial assistance for resettlement projects, for the acquisition and development of land, through a joint-venture, where the LGU provides the land or covers the land cost.

NHA website: www.nha.gov.ph

THE HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT COORDINATING

COUNCIL (HUDCC)

HUDCC’s main function is to coordinate the different national government agencies involved in housing and to ensure the execution of the National Shelter Programme. According to the 1992 Urban Development and Housing Act, the HUDCC shall support LGUs in formulating standards and guidelines and providing assistance in the formulation of land use plans; provide data on population and development trends in order to inform future planning and investment programmes; and assist in obtaining funds and resources for their programmes.

The HUDCC is in charge of the Secure Tenure programme, by orchestrating the issuance of Presidential


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proclamations that declare lots of public lands open for disposal by qualified beneficiaries. Together with the National Housing Authority, the HUDCC is responsible for the award of Certificates for Lot Entitlement/ Lot Award (CELAs), to ensure security of tenure to informal settlers.

HUDCC website: http://www.hudcc.gov.ph/

HOUSING AND LAND USE REGULATORY BOARD (HLURB)

HLURB, under HUDCC, has as its mission “to promulgate and enforce land use and housing regulations which sustain a balance among economic advancement, social justice and environmental protection for the equitable distribution and enjoyment of development benefits” (http://www.hlurb.gov.ph/). Its functions include assisting LGUs in developing their comprehensive land use plans (CLUP), providing them with planning assistance and training, enforcing zoning regulations, reviewing, evaluating and ratifying land use plans, and reinforcing rational housing and real estate service delivery through policy, planning and regulation. It is responsible for registering and supervising Homeowners Associations, and enforcing law, rules and regulations, such as the 20% Balanced Housing Requirement. According to Executive Order No. 90, its main function is to encourage private sector participation in low-cost housing through simplification and decentralization of procedures.

HLURB website: http://www.hlurb.gov.ph/

NATIONAL HOME MORTGAGE FINANCE CORPORATION

(NHMFC)

According to Executive Order No. 90, the NHMFC has as its main function to operate a viable home mortgage market, with funds from the Social Security System, the Government Service Insurance System and the Home Development Mutual Fund. In addition, it should seek to attract further private funds for long-term housing mortgages. It administers the Community Mortgage Program, a financing programme for low-income housing which assists poor residents with affordable financing to enable them to own the land they live on, or are resettled to. Beneficiaries can also buy and own a tract of land communally. The CMP has assisted more than 200,000 urban poor households around the country. Since 2007, the CMP has provided close to PHP 981 million to assist 18,000 families obtain security of tenure.

The NHMFC also runs the Abot Kaya Pabahay (AKP) Developmental Loan Program, which assists priority areas identified by the LGUs in terms of socio-economic and housing development.

NHMFC website: http://www.nhmfc.gov.ph/

THE HOME GUARANTY CORPORATION (HGC)

According to Executive Order No. 90, the HGC shall assist the private sector in being involved in mass housing projects, and shall design a scheme to encourage financial institutions to finance housing development and long-term mortgage.

HGC website: http://www.hgc.gov.ph/

Sources:

Government of the Philippines. 1986. Executive Order No. 90. http://www3.hlurb.gov.ph/yabbse/attachments/eo_90.pdf

LOCAL GOVERNMENT ACADEMY (LGA)

The training arm of the Department of the Interior and Local Government, the LGA is mandated to build the capacity of LGU staff through continuing education, resource capacity and human resources development. Offered courses include workshops on local leadership, on developing legislation for effective local governance, on resources mobilization and financial management, on technical skills for project feasibility studies, on public-private partnerships, etc. The LGA training centre is located at the campus of the University of the Philippines, and scholarship programmes are sometimes offered to assist in covering the costs.

LGA website: http://www.lga.gov.ph/main.php

LAND BANK OF THE PHILIPPINES (LBP)

The Land Bank of the Philippines is a government financial institution that uses the profits it gains from its commercial operations to finance developmental programmes, such as provision of loans to farmers and fishermen, micro-, small and medium enterprises, livelihood projects and agricultural and environmental activities. The Bank has lent funds to assist the Arroyo administration to cover a part of the costs for the


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resettlement of squatters from Metro Manila to non-metropolitan areas since mid-2007. The TODO UNLAD Programme , although aimed at countryside development, could perhaps be tapped by the Plaridel LGU. It lends funds to local government units (to whom it also provides advisory service), to cooperatives and the private sector, in order to promote an integrated approach to development. The projects are aimed at increasing agricultural productivity, improving basic infrastructure and eventually passing ownership of assets to cooperatives, in order to move towards rural industrialization. The Bank’s end-buyers and developmental loan programmes are also aimed to assisting in housing questions, while the joint Land Bank-Pag-IBIG lending programme is specifically aimed at the informal sector.

The Bank has a lending programme for LGUs, which asks them to contribute 25% of the total cost, while the collateral can be 20% of IRA or of the income/profits from the project.

Land Bank of the Philippines website: https://www.landbank.com/index.asp

DEVELOPMENT BANK OF THE PHILIPPINES (DBP)

The DBP supports development projects in any of its four core priority areas, i.e. infrastructure and logistics, micro and SMEs, environment, and social services. During a March 2008 meeting hosted by the Institute for Solidarity of Asia, the Bank’s CEO stated DBP’s commitment to work with LGUs in these areas, mentioning that more than PHP 45 billion are available. The Marketing LGU department has been set up to create the link between LGUs and the Bank, and be better able to meet LGU financing needs. The Bank has already financed numerous housing, livelihood, community development and infrastructure projects. The Development of Poor Urban Communities Sector Project, which aimed to upgrade urban poor living conditions and provide socialized housing, was recently completed. Through this project, a PHP 6 million sub-loan was provided to the government of Angeles City (Pampanga) for its socialized housing programme, and in partnership with the HUDCC capacity building and support for project implementation was provided to communities and LGUs to implement community-driven planning and decentralized shelter delivery.

The Bank is also assisting Butuan City in the development of a resettlement site for communities that will be affected by a river basin project. In 2007 it started the Microfinance Development Programme through which it lends funds to micro-enterprises in poor municipalities for activities like enterprise development, housing improvement, PV solar home lighting, etc.

DBP website: http://www.devbankphil.com.ph/index.php

Potential private partners

As mentioned before, the Urban Development and Housing Act demands that private developers allocate 20% of their costs or area of their developments to socialized housing projects/ investments. The LGU should enforce this condition in the subdivisions that have been developed in Plaridel.

The Medium-Term Philippine Development Plan 2004-2010 states that private sector participation (including private financial institutions) in the provision of socialized housing finance and construction should be increased by establishing an active and liquid secondary mortgage market (through NHMFC), through the provision of credit at market-based interest rates, by using assets and non-performing loans to generate additional funds, and by linking with the private banking sector and private developers for joint venture arrangements (NEDA, 2004).

Corporate Social Responsibility has become a symbol of good practice among many businesses around the world today. Concerned with contributing to the communities where they operate, through social or environmental actions, it is a way for companies to portray a powerfully responsible and concerned image to their shareholders and stakeholders.

LOPEZ GROUP FOUNDATION

The Lopez Group Foundation, which started as a number of family businesses over one century ago, has shifted its focus from philanthropy, especially at times of calamity, to corporate social responsibility as customary behaviour, based on the principle that “to survive, any business or corporation must be useful to the society it serves”. Thus, the initiatives promoted by the group align with the Millennium Development Goals, in the areas of education, health and poverty alleviation. Rather than creating


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dependency, the activities aim to assist communities to stand on their own so that they can become active in their own development. Involved in power generation and energy distribution, telecommunications, real estate, road and essential infrastructure, members of the Lopez Group include foundations, holding companies and major corporations, such as Manila Electric Company (MERALCO) and ABS-CBN Broadcasting Corporation.

These companies and foundations have undertaken a number of projects in areas of health, education, workplace and corporate wellness, environment, organizational/ civic support, livelihoods and poverty. The most relevant to meeting the needs of the urban poor are the following:

ABS-CBN BAYAN FOUNDATION

This foundation, which started as a small programme for women entrepreneurs in Loyola heights, Quezon City, in 1997, has grown to have a loans base of more than PHP 2.1 billion distributed among 38,000 clients in more than 1,200 barangays or towns across the country. It assists in microfinance, by providing small loans to poor families to assist in starting sari-sari stores or for savings and insurance, at a 3% interest rate. The foundation also runs the Linang Bayan, a programme to enhance business management and leadership skills. It has been very successful, achieving a repayment rate of 97% and plans to expand its client base and its loan exposure by respectively more than 15% and 30% annually. Members are able to save more than 40% of savings on the loans (Lopez Group Foundation, 2005). It has worked in partnership with:

Bauang Private Power Corporation (BPPC/ FPPC/ BCC/ PPC) to provide microfinance to poor enterprising residents of the municipality of Bauang, La Union since 1998.

First Gas Power Corporation to provide microfinance to Batangas residents. FGP Corp has also undertaken projects to construct lighting and water systems.

ABS-CBN Bayan Foundation website:http://www.abs-cbnbayanfoundation.com/abs-cbnbayan/main.asp

FIRST PHILIPPINE HOLDINGS CORPORATION

Working in the area of energy, infrastructure and supporting industries, the corporation aims to partner with the Filipino in order to push the boundaries of social development. In the area of environment, FPHC assisted in educational efforts with barangays in Quezon City regarding dumping garbage in rivers and watershed management. In the social context it undertook the Paliparan Site III Integrated Community Development Project between 2000 and 2004 to work with NGOs and people’s organizations to develop their capability to address community concerns, including tenurial. A 51ha lot in Paliparan was the relocation site of 4,000 informal settlers from the Manila Bay Reclamation Area in 1993. Although roads, schools and a water system was in place, livelihood opportunities were limited and due to a land dispute, the land was not fully passed to the resettled. To move beyond voluntary activities such as medical and feeding missions, FPHC partnered with the Philippine Business School for Social Progress to outline and address the main community concerns. The project aimed to create a multi-stakeholder structure that would oversee the employment and livelihood, youth welfare, environmental management and land settlement activities it set up. It worked with more than 3,000 urban households in Cavite and strengthened the organizational skills of stakeholders including NGOs and POs. The main aim of the project, however, remains the encouragement of self-reliance and ownership for the project, so that as beneficiaries gain confidence in their capabilities, they move beyond dependence (Lopez Group Foundation, 2005).

FPHC website: http://www.fphc.com

FIRST PHILIPPINE INDUSTRIAL CORPORATION

A corporation involved in pipeline transport of petroleum products, it has engaged in a number of projects in the areas of health, environment, education and poverty. In the latter, it has assisted, in cooperation with the National Home Mortgage Finance Corporation, in the resettlement of 767 households (between late 2002 and mid-2003) in Batangas following a participatory, NGO-led approach. It has also worked in redefining the role of the different stakeholders and securing a sustainable solution for a Right-of-Way (ROW) to ensure that resettled communities do not suffer economically as a result of the relocation. It


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cooperated with Don Senen Gabaldon Foundation, that provided close to PHP 1.8 million in financial assistance to informal settlers for their relocation from the ROW perimeters.

FIRST PHILIPPINE INDUSTRIAL PARK (FPIP)

Concerned with providing increased employment and livelihood opportunities and implementing community-based, environment, safety and health programmes, the park donated a 2,225m2 lot to Barangay residents in Tanauan City in 2002, it assisted in the repair and construction of water and drainage systems in 52 households in Sto. Tomas and implemented road concreting, drainage system and canal rehabilitation projects in four host barangays.

FPIP website: http://www.fpip.com/

MANILA ELECTRIC COMPANY (MERALCO)

Between 1990 and 1999, Meralco implemented the Depressed Area Electrification Programme, providing electricity and services at minimal cost to urban poor in Manila and in rural areas, benefitting close to 490,000 households. It also undertook a streetlight upgrading and maintenance programme in a number of cities and municipalities. Dependants of Meralco employees are given the opportunity to partake in livelihood and entrepreneurial skills programmes and cooperatives.

MERALCO website: http://www.meralco.com.ph/

Sources:

Lopez Group Foundation website: http://www.lopezgroup.org/lgfi/index.php

Lopez Group Foundation. 2005. Bridges – Corporate Social Responsibility Initiatives in the Lopez Group. Annual Report of the Lopez Group Foundation. Pasig City: ABS-CBN Publishing.

http://www.lopezgroup.org/lgfi/images/stories/downloads/Bridges2005.pdf

Potential not-for-profit partners

It is widely recognized that NGOs and not-for profit organizations are more effective than governments in the undertaking of certain activities, such as social preparation and community empowerment. Empowered communities are better able to meet their needs and less dependent on government for resources and assistance. The following is a list of NGOs and not-for-profit organizations that have cooperated with government to assist in the implementation of housing projects, in the provision of resources, of training (to communities, groups as well as LGUs) and that have experience in resettlement, savings schemes, etc.

CARITAS MANILA

Caritas, under the Catholic Archidiocese of Manila, works towards the human development of the marginalized, through the empowerment of the poor, provision of services and promotion of social justice. Caritas Manila focuses on four priority issues for the urban poor: housing and land tenure, livelihood and employment, restorative justice, and family and life. In addition to being an advocacy body as concerns laws and their implementation, it advises and mediates for communities in cases of eviction, demolition and relocation.

In 1991 it assisted the urban poor in Manila by acquiring a lot where 350 families affected by a flash flood in Leyte could be relocated. Since 1991 it has had an Urban Poor Desk aimed at assisting the growing number of people affected by demolition and at providing legal and advocacy support in land and housing disputes. Further assistance has been granted through electrification and provision of piped water in certain areas, in further resettlement cases and in the establishment of Pinagsama-samang Lakas ng Pabahay at Hanap-buhay, Inc or Pabuhay in 1996. Pabuhay is a coalition of communities with land and housing concerns, which has assisted in bridge-financing in resettlement cases and works in cooperation with the Foundation for Development of the Urban Poor (FDUP).

Father Dennis Espejo, from the St. James Parish, a Caritas member, intends expanding the number of staff working on livelihood skills and social preparation in Plaridel. The livelihood skills component would include formation on marketing and access to capital, to ensure that the beneficiaries are able to sustainably earn a living


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from the activities they are trained in (e.g. meat processing). Father Dennis is also working with the Manila-based organization ACTO to promote social preparation activities with 100 families in Dapdap, to prepare them for future resettlement.

Sources:

Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Manila – Caritas Manila: http://www.rcam.org/ministry/socialservices/caritas.htm

Caritas – Church of the Poor website: http://www.caritas.org.ph/

COUPLES FOR CHRIST – GAWAD KALINGA

Gawad Kalinga (GK) is an initiative of Couples for Christ launched in 1995 to transform poor areas, by initially assisting with building homes for the poorest of the poor. Since 2003 it is working to build 700,000 homes in 7,000 communities in 7 years (GK777 programme). The initiative is based on the principles of community empowerment and stewardship, not the provision of charity, which leads to dependency. The programme attempts to mobilize volunteers and partners, to contribute to the goal of nation-building. People have to assist their neighbours to build their house, along with GK volunteers, which beyond teaching construction and carpentry skills, builds community spirit. The TATAG programme builds houses, pathways, drainage systems, water and sewerage facilities, schools, livelihood centres, basketball courts, etc. There is always an attempt to beautify communities: houses are colourful, there are landscaped parks and gardens, in order to bring back the marginalised’s sense of dignity and hope. The Gawad Kabuhayan programme provides the communities with livelihood and skills training, microfinance, materials for micro-enterprises, assistance to market products and to practice backyard and urban agriculture. Youth development, health and other programmes are also implemented. Given the success the initiative has had, it is the target of donations of corporations and the wealthy, receiving PHP 600 million in 2006. It has already built 22,000 homes across the country.

A guide for LGUs on how to meet the housing needs of the urban poor, by building Gawad Kalinga communities has been produced by the Philippines-Canada Local Government Support Programme and Gawad Kalinga. This would provide a useful tool for the LGU, and can be obtained by Gawad Kalinga (for title, see LGSP & GK-CFC, 2005).

Sources:

Gawad Kalinga website: http://www.gawadkalinga.org/whatisgk.htm

Couples for Christ, Gawad Kalinga website: http://couplesforchristglobal.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=22&Itemid=129

Philippines-Canada Local Government Support Programme (LGSP) and Gawad Kalinga – Couples for Christ (GK-CFC). 2005. Transformative Partnerships: A Replication Guide for Building LGU-Initiated Gawad Kalinga Communities.

ALTERNATIVE PLANNING INITIATIVES – ALTERPLAN

A technical service organization composed of architects and planners to improve housing and settlements development, by providing training in a number of areas related to housing for the urban poor, including technical, financial, organizational and socio-economic aspects. ALTERPLAN organizes workshops on community and project planning, self-help housing and cooperative housing, for urban poor communities, NGOs or LGUs (organized by the Local Government Academy, the City Development Strategies project of the League of Cities of the Philippines, and the Local Government Finance and Development Project for Project Packaging Workshops). The kind of projects ALTERPLAN has been involved in, include the following examples, which are not exhaustive of the variety of work undertaken by this institute.

ALTERPLAN was selected by Alyansa ng Maralita sa Novaliches/Consultative Body (ALMANOVA/CB), a federation of community associations in Quezon City, to act as the consultant to undertake the technical studies for a resettlement project of 5,000 families that will be displaced by the construction of the Circumferential Road 5. ALTERPLAN will also assist


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in the negotiations between ALMANOVA/CB, the Development Bank of the Philippines and the government.

ALTERPLAN in cooperation with the Foundation for Integrative and Development Studies developed a monitoring system for analyzing the urban environment and quality of life of informal settlers at the barangay level in Manila, in order to measure progress towards target 11 of the Millennium Development Goals, i.e. the achievement of a significant improvement in the lives of at least 100 million slum dwellers by 2020. In addition to providing information on the current status of the shelter and environmental context in the informal settlements, which can be later used as a baseline against which to measure progress, it shed light on the priorities that should be tackled by development plans. The monitoring focuses on five areas: residential status, access to safe water, to sanitation and other infrastructure, structural quality of housing and degree of crowding. A training handbook about the Barangay level Monitoring System has been produced to assist LGUs to implement similar monitoring systems, which provides methodologies, procedures, survey questionnaires, a database and analysis instruments (Rebullida & Redoblado, 2007). The English version of the questionnaire can be found in Appendices.

ALTERPLAN organized a study tour, in cooperation with STRIDES Inc. and the Institute of Philippine Culture of the Ateneo de Manila University, to share the results of the Upscaling Urban Poor Community Renewal Scheme project with LGUs, implementing agencies and community groups. The participants had the chance to meet project stakeholders and see and hear about the different community mobilization methods, cost-recovery schemes, and approaches and infrastructure to be used for community upgrading.

ALTERPLAN website: http://www.alterplan.org.ph/English/frames.html

Sources:

Rebullida, L.G. and S.D. Redoblado. 2007. Process Guide to Local Level Monitoring of the Millennium Development

Goals. Goal 7 – Environmental Sustainability. Target 11 – Improvement in the Lives of Slum Dwellers. EU-SPF & ALTERPLAN report. Quezon City: ALTERPLAN.

Available online: http://www.alterplan.org.ph/documents/utils.php?action=download&filename=Manual.pdf

NATIONAL SAVINGS & HOME COOPERATIVE

The National Savings and Home Cooperative, based in Cebu City provides training on housing projects, with a goal of providing decent and affordable housing to each homeless cooperator through the cooperative housing concept.

NSHC Website: http://www.mycoop.ph/index.php?option=com_content&task=blogcategory&id=96&Itemid=173

HABITAT FOR HUMANITY PHILIPPINES (HFHP)

Habitat for Humanity Philippines is a nonprofit Christian housing ministry that works to eliminate poverty housing and that assists people by building decent affordable housing with them. It has built over 15,000 houses in more than 100 communities, with the assistance of thousands of volunteers. HFHP asks its beneficiaries to contribute labour for building their and others’ houses (“sweat equity”), in addition to contributing to the costs. The Save and Build funding scheme demands a down payment for one third of the cost of the house by the beneficiaries, followed by monthly, affordable, zero-interest, inflation-adjusted mortgage payments that encourage a culture of savings by the beneficiaries. The other third is provided by International Habitat.

Affiliate nonprofit volunteer groups work with Habitat for Humanity to coordinate the home building process in their area, by selecting beneficiary families, securing suitable sites, organizing mortgage services, fund-raising and donation of materials and manpower. Other partners of HFHP are organizations, such as the Centre for Community Transformation, that work on microfinance, livelihoods training, etc., areas which lie outside its core competencies.


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HFHP’s Habitat Building and Resource Centre uses the expertise of construction professionals to provide appropriate technologies, technical capacity, materials and lessons on best practices and innovative construction techniques. It has assisted in a resettlement project in San

Pedro, Laguna, and in the Manila Port Area to keep housing costs within the budget limits through the choice of materials and construction techniques.

Habitat for Humanity Philippines website: http://www.habitat.org.ph/portal/index.php

4. UDHA Compliance Checklist

Name of LGU: ____________________________ Date_______________

CHECKLIST Yes No Remarks

1. INSTITUTIONAL ARRANGEMENTS

Does the LGU have

Comprehensive Land Use Plan When was the CLUP prepared? Has it been approved by the Sanggunian? Has it been approved by the HLURB?

Municipal Urban and Development and Housing Office?

What is the basis for creation? Does it have an annual budget? How many personnel does it have?

Municipal Urban and Development and Housing Board

What is the basis for creation? Does it have an annual budget? How many personnel does it have? Has it passed policies on housing and urban development?

Urban Poor Affairs Office What is the basis for creation? Does it have an annual budget? How many personnel does it have?

Committee on Housing at the Sanggunian How many ordinances on housing and urban development has it passed?

How many councilors are members? Local Shelter Plan Was the Shelter Plan integrated in the Local Development

Plan/ Local Development Investment Plan? Is there an ordinance ratifying it?

Zoning Ordinance Is the Zoning Ordinance being implemented? When was it enacted?

Other Offices responsible for housing What office is responsible for housing ?

2. LAND INVENTORY

Does the LGU have an approved CLUP which identifies socialized housing sites?

In case it has not been updated, why is it not yet updated?

Does the LGU have a Land Inventory ? Has there have been changes in the second Inventory from the first inventory?

What caused these changes? 3. IDENTIFICATION OF SITES FOR SOCIALIZED HOUSING


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Has the LGU identified sites for socialized housing?

Has the LGU identified sites for socialized housing? How many hectares of government land are unused since

Mar. 29, 1982 (10 years before Mar. 29, 1992, the effectivity date of UDHA) have been identified?

From those identified for socialized housing, what are those found in the land inventory?

Where are these lands located? (Whether on-site or off-site; within the Municipality; within Metro Cities or outside)

What are the classifications of these lands? (Government-owned alienable lands of the public domain; unregistered or abandoned and Idle lands; within tie declared areas for priority development; zonal improvement program sites; slum improvement and resettlement program sites; Bagong Lipunan improvement of Sites and Services; privately owned lands)

Who owns the land? How many lots per classification, what are the size (in has.

or sq. in.)?

4. LAND ACQUISITION

Has the LGU acquired lands for socialized housing?

Did the LGU acquire the entire property? If not, just how big was or were the lot/s that you acquired?

Why did the LGU not acquire it wholly? (Give the location, classification, how many lots per classification and who owns them)

Aside from those identified as sites for socialized housing, were there any other lands acquired?

If there are, where are the locations and what are its classification?

How many parcels or how much land did the LGU acquire for on-site development or slum improvement, In-city, within Metro Cities or outside Metro Cities relocation?

5. MODES OF LAND ACQUISITION

Has the LGU undertaken any of the modes of land acquisition?

(From the lands acquired) What are the modes of land acquisition that have been used? -Community mortgage, land swapping, land assembly or consolidation, land banking, donation to the government, joint-venture agreement, negotiated purchase, o expropriation?

How many idle lands were expropriated? How many were government owned or privately owned?

6. DISPOSITION OF LANDS FOR SOCIALIZED HOUSING

Has the LGU disposed any of the acquired lands?

· Were these used for socialized housing? if not, why? if they were used, who developed the land?

· How much was the total project cost? · How many houses I units were built?

Does the LGU recover the cost of disposed lands?

· How many benefited from the disposition of the acquired lands?

· Were these given for free, leased-purchased or on lease-purchase agreement?

· If beneficiaries are paying, how much? · (If there are those who do not pay even if it's not for free)

Why are they not paying? · What action did the LGU take on those who do not pay?


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· Where did the beneficiaries come from? · Were the recipients UDHA beneficiaries?

7. SOCIALIZED HOUSING BENEFICIARIES

Has the LGU conducted a registration of UDHA beneficiaries?

· When was the registration of beneficiaries made?

· How was this done? Were City/Municipal and Barangay Registration Committees formed?

· How many program beneficiaries were listed? · How many were residing on: public lands, private lands,

infrastructure project sites, or danger areas?

8. PROFESSIONAL SQUATTERS I SQUATTING SYNDICATES AND NEW ILLEGAL STRUCTURES

Has the LGU undertaken any action against professional squatters and squatting syndicates?

· What is the LGUs definition of the term 'professional squatters'?

· How about squatting syndicates?

· Has the LGU arrested or charged professional squatters and or squatting syndicates?

· Where are they now? · Were their residential structures demolished? · How many families were involved? · How many are children, women and elderly?

· From 1992, after a census of all 'illegal structure' was done, has there been any increase that was recorded of late?

· How many families or structures were added? · Why did the LGU or Barangay allowed this to happened?

· Has the LGU caught / destroyed any new illegal structures?· In what places did these happen? · How many families were involved? · How many are children, women and elderly?

· Of the professional squatters, squatting syndicates and new illegal structures that were demolished were the affected families given relocation, given socialized housing program, or included in the slum upgrading?

· Has the city government or the barangay council received any administrative sanction for allowing or not doing anything on the presence of 'new illegal structures' in their areas of responsibility?

· What kind of administrative sanction did they receive?

9. POPULATION MOVEMENT

Does the LGU have any policy regarding in-migration and out migration?

· Does the LGU have any record of in-migration and out-migration in their locality?

10. EVICTION AND DEMOLITION


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Is the LGU aware of the procedures on demolitions and evictions?

· How many demolitions and evictions were undertaken from 1997-1999?

· Where did this happen? · What were the reasons? (private lands, danger areas, -

esteros, railroad tracks, garbage dump sites, riverbanks, shorelines, waterways, sidewalks, roads - parks, playgrounds, government infrastructure projects - roads, bridges, buildings, etc., court order for eviction and demolition)

EVICTION AND DEMOLITION · How many families were affected? · How many are children, pregnant women, and elderly? · Were there any special treatment / support / assistance

given to them? · If there were, what were those? if there was none, why?

· What is the LGU's apparatus / mechanism for demolitions and evictions?

· What department, branch, or agency is responsible for this?

· Does the LGU have its own regular demolition crews? · If none, does it hire or form demolition. teams? · If there's a regular demolition crew, does it experience

shortage of manpower? · If it does, does it hire additional/contractual manpower?

· Has it established its own Task Force on Relocation and Resettlement?

· Does it form an Action Team every time a demolition/eviction Is to be carried out? (Ask for every demolition that was conducted)

· Does it organize Inter-Agency Meetings? · Are NGOs and P0 representatives invited to these

meetings?

· How often do the judges and sheriffs coordinate with the LGUs in the Implementation of court-ordered demolitions?

· Of the demolitions that have been conducted, In what particular cases did the judges and sheriffs coordinated their efforts with the LGU?

· Does the Task Force or the LGU's demolition arm maintain records of the demolitions and evictions it has undertaken?

· Has the LGU identified site/s for slum upgrading or on-site development?

· Where are these located? · What is the size/area of the lands? · How many families are living there?

EVICTION AND DEMOLITION · What are the processes that the upgrading or development of the place went through? Identify the participation of or linkages between and or among PO, NGO and GO?

· Has there been sites identified for resettlement? · Where are these located? · Have many resettlement sites are located within the city? · Where? · What are their sizes?

· How many of those identified as sites for resettlement have been used? How many families I people have been resettled there? How many are women, children, and elderly? When were they resettled? Where did they come from? Were they transferred there first before their houses were demolished or were their houses demolished first before they were? transferred?


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· Among the resettlement sites, which belongs to the national government? (NHA, DPWH, etc.) Has the LGU entered into a partnership I joint venture with the National Government to establish, resettlement sites? Of the resettlement sites enumerated, which are the ones where there Is a partnership between the LGU and the National government?

11. MEDIUM-RISE HOUSING

Does the LGU have its own medium-rise housing program?

· How many housing units have been built? How many are the beneficiaries? What is their tenure? (ownership, lease, lease with option to purchase)

· What is the price per unit? What is the mode of payment?

12. COMMUNITY MORTGAGE PROGRAM

Has the LGU undertaken CMP projects in their area?

· Is the LGU a CMP originator? · How many community mortgage projects has it

undertaken? · How many are he beneficiaries?

13. RENTAL HOUSING

Has the LGU undertaken rental housing projects in their area?

· Of the housing projects mentioned, which one were intended for rental housing?

· Is the LGU able to implement estate Management Policies? · Is it able to collect rent I payment from the beneficiaries? · Are there families who do not pay? Why?

· How many units have been occupied? · How many families are living there? · Of these sites, how many are renting? How much is the

rent?

· How are the beneficiaries for the rental housing identified?

· Who is in-charge of building maintenance? How much is spent for its maintenance? Where does the budget for this come from?

14. BASIC SERVICES, COMMUNITY FACILITIES AND LIVELIHOOD

Is the LGU aware of its role in providng basic services, community facilities and livelihood to serve socialized housing projects?

· (From the list of socialized housing, slum upgrading/ on-site development and resettlement, ask)

· Are the following facilities and/or services present in the area: water system, electricity, sewerage system, solid waste disposal system, access to primary roads and transportation, health centers / hospitals, schools, telephones, police stations/precinct, and recreational facilities?

· Were these given or built by the LGU or was the site chosen for its proximity to these facilities?

· Are the sites located near areas where employment opportunities are accessible?

· What kinds of jobs are available in the areas?


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· Are there livelihood programs for the people? · What are these? · Are there any other organizations (private, NGOs, etc.)

providing livelihood programs for the people? Please name them.

· How many are the beneficiaries of the programs? · How many are males, females, youth?

· Where do the funds come from?

15. PARTICIPATION OF BENEFICIARIES/ORGANIZATION

Does the LGU provide a mechanism for the participation of beneficiaries

· How do the beneficiaries participate in the LGU's housing and related programs?

· Did the people have an organization in the community where they were in prior to the housing program which they received?

· How were they formed into an organization? · If they were transferred to another site, did their

organization remain intact or did they form another one? · If they formed another one, who helped them form the new

organization?

16. OTHER LOCAL HOUSING PROJECTS

Does the LGU have other housing project/s with the National Government Agencies and other private agencies and institutions?

· Does the LGU have other housing projects prior to 1992 that are still being used for resettlement?

· Where are the project/s located? · What agency or institution is/are involved? · What is the size of the project? · How many lots and/or units are generated? · How many are the beneficiaries from each housing project?

17. PROMOTION OF INDIGENOUS HOUSING MATERIALS AND TECHNOLOGIES

Has the LGU promoted/used indigenous housing materials and technologies ?

· What housing technologies were employed in the construction of the housing projects?

· What materials were the housing projects made of? · Did the LGU spent less or was able to save somehow with

the technology and materials that were used?

18. BALANCED HOUSING DEVELOPMENT

Has the LGU benefited from the balanced housing development provision of UDHA?

· Who are the developers who have had housing projects In the city/municipality?

· How many developers have complied with the balanced housing development provision of the UDHA?

· How many housing units were generated from its implementation?

· How did the developer comply with the 20% balanced housing development provision (development of new settlement, slum upgrading or renewal of areas for priority development through zonal improvement programs or slum improvement and resettlement programs, joint venture projects with LGU or other housing agencies, CMP)?

19. COST RECOVERABLE PROGRAM


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Does the LGU consider cost recovery in its own housing programs I projects I investments?

· How does it undertake collection? · What is its collection efficiency?

20. FUNDING

Does the LGU have a budget for housing and urban development projects?

· Where does the LGU gel its funds for socialized housing and resettlement programs?

5. List of Housing Projects Conducted by Local Government Units in the Philippines

Source: Ballesteros, M.M. 2002. Rethinking Institutional Reforms in the Philippine Housing Sector. Philippine Institute for Development Studies. Discussion Paper Series No. 2002-16. Available online: http://www3.pids.gov.ph/ris/dps/pidsdps0216.pdf

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allesteros, M.Mg Institutional Rppine HousingInstitute for ent Studies. n Paper Series Available onlinew3.pids.gov.ph/

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7. List of Interviews, Focus Groups and Field Visits Conducted

MONDAY, JULY 21ST

Presentation by Mayor Tessie Vistan

Presentation by Councillor Chippy Tantingco

Presentation by Councillor Sheila Enriquez

Presentation by Teresa Viernes (CDSWO)

Presentation by Renee on Solid Waste Management

Field visit to Barangay Banga 1

Interview with residents: representatives from the neighborhood association (Samahang Magkakapit Bahay Sa Ilog)

Consultation with instructor

TUESDAY, JULY 22ND

Presentation on Municipality of Plaridel’s Comprehensive Land-Use Plan

Presentation on Transportation Planning

Presentation on Sustainable Rural Livelihoods

Presentation on Livelihood Program/Public Employment Service Office

Presentation by Roland on Youth Development Planning

Presentation by Mel on the Department of the Interior and Local Government

Field visit to public market

Group interview with Gilbert Angeles, Office of Economic Development

WEDNESDAY, JULY 23RD

Group interview with Philippines National Police

Group interview with Dr. Macario M. Manicad Jr. (Health Centre)

Group interview at the Community Affairs Office

THURSDAY, JULY 24TH

Meeting with PAG-ASA Youth Association of the Philippines Inc.

Focus group with youth leaders

Visit to 3 local schools

FRIDAY, JULY 25TH

Visit to Malolos, Bulacan

Interview with Ms. Arlene G. Pascual (Provincial Government)

SUNDAY, JULY 27TH

Leadership skills workshop with youth group representatives from SK Councils

Visit to Barangay Banga 1; focus group with community members from informal settlements

MONDAY, JULY 28TH

Field visit to Barangay Culianin; group interview

Field visit to Barangay San Jose; group interview

Field visit to Barangay Tabang; group interview

Field visit to Barangay Sto. Nino; group interview

TUESDAY, JULY 29TH

Individual interview with Teresa Viernes (CDSWO)

Field visit to Barangay Banga 2 (barangay hall and informal settlements)

Individual interview with barangay officials, volunteers and residents

WEDNESDAY, JULY 30TH

Field visit to Barangay Tabang (barangay hall and informal settlements)

Individual interview with barangay officials, representatives from the resident’s association

Individual interview with Engr. Alvaro (Municipal Development Planning Office)

Group interview with representatives from the Municipal Cooperative Development Council

THURSDAY, JULY 31ST

Field visit to Sitio Bacood

Interview with residents and representatives from the Sitio Bacood Neighborhood Association


80

Field visit to Barangay Poblacion

Focus group with residents of informal settlements from Parulan (held at St. James Church)

MONDAY, AUGUST 4TH

Individual interview with Mayor Tessie Vistan

TUESDAY, AUGUST 5TH

Individual interview with Mila

TUESDAY, AUGUST 5TH

Individual interview with Pascua

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Berner, E., (2002), “Learning from informal markets: innovative approaches to land and housing provision”, in Westendorff, D. and Eade, D., (eds), Development and Cities: Essays from Development in Practice, Oxfam, Oxford, pp. 226-247.

Burra, Sundar. “Towards a pro-poor framework for slum upgrading in Mumbai,India.” Environment & Urbanization, 17.1 (2005): 67-88.

Burra, Sundar, Sheela Patel and Thomas Kerr. “Community-designed, built and managed toilet blocks in Indian cities.” Environment & Urbanization, 15.2 (2003): 11-32.

Danmole, Taibat Olaitan. “Housing Provision in Nigeria: the Cooperative Alternative.” Paper presented for publication by the Building Quarterly, June 2004.

Durand-Lasserve, Alain. “Informal settlements and the millennium development goals: global policy debates on property ownership and security of tenure”. Global Urban Development Magazine (2):1, March 2006.

Ferrioli, Simona. Social Production of Habitat. United Nations Human Settlements Programme, Regional Office for Latin American and the Caribbean, 2005.

Gilbert, Alan. “The Return of the Slum: Does Language Matter?” International Journal of Urban and Regional Research (31):4, December 2007. pp. 697-713.

Gorman, Robert. Great Debates at the United Nations: An Encyclopedia of Fifty Key Issues, 1945-2000. Westport, CT: Greenwood Publishing Group, 2001.

Government of the Philippines. 1991. The 1991 Local Government Code.

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