Flood Disaster Risk Management in the Philippines and Thailand: An Institutional and

Political Perspective

Jesse Bacamante ManutaSchool of Arts and SciencesAteneo de Davao UniversityDavao City, The Philippines

First Meeting of the Vulnerability of Food Systems to GEC Research Network SAC5 and Exec 10 Meetings

17-18 May 2006Hawkwell House Hotel

Oxford, UK

Outline

Background

Framework and Approaches

Findings and Insights

Ways forward

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Differential Social Vulnerability

Institutions- are working rules or norms which define roles, rights and responsibilities of actors (Young 2002)

Household, communities, firms or state (actors) may host many kinds of institutions that guide the behavior of their members

Formal and informal institutions shapes differences in risk and vulnerability

Interplay of institutions define what and whom is to be at risk; shape the way flood disaster are defined, perceived and acted upon

Coping and Adaptive Capacity

Capacities to reduce risks of disaster LIE both within actors and in the relationship among actors

Relations that regularly define roles and responsibilities and rules of engagement in ways that enhance the capacities of actors-- institutionalized capacities

Relationship among actors have different functions that may be institutionalized

the capacity for deliberations and negotiations capacity to mobilize and coordinate resources implementation capacity for evaluation

FUNCTIONS(relations among actors)

PHASES OF DISASTER CYCLEMitigation

(Well before)

Preparedness(Before)

Emergency(During)

Rehabilitation(After)

DeliberationWhat should be done?

CoordinationWho is responsible?

ImplementationHow was it done?

EvaluationWas it done well?

General Framework for Assessing Institutional Capacities & Practices

Source: Lebel et al (2006)

Focus: Formal institutions created by the state to deal with

flood related disaster and how these institutions

interact with local, often informal, institutions

Methods and Study Area___________________________________________________Review formal institutions (Thailand & the Philippines)__________________________________________________________Flood disaster case studies (Thailand only)

Upland and lowland villages in Omkoi District, Chiang Mai (20 May 2004)

Urban settlements in Saraphi and Muang in Chiang Mai (20 May 2004; 14-16 Aug 2005)

Urban and rural settlements of Sena and Muang in Ayutthaya (previous floods)

_________________________________________________________ General Review of Newspapers and Secondary Materials (Thailand & the Philippines)

Average per Event

Number of Events 65

Number of People Killed 2,666 41

Number of People Injured 570 9

Homeless 500,841 7,705

Affected 10,124,281 155,758

Damages USD (000’s) 434,549 6,685

Summarized Table of Flood Disaster in the Philippines from 1905-2005

Source: EM-DAT:The OFDA/CRED International Disaster Database (www.em-dat.net)

Average per Event

Number of Events 49

Number of People Killed 2,503 51

Number of People Injured 4,085 83

Homeless 163,283 3,332

Affected 27,277,515 556,684

Damages USD (000’s) 4,598,651 93,850

Summarized Table of Flood Disaster in Thailand from 1955-2005

Source: EM-DAT:The OFDA/CRED International Disaster Database (www.em-dat.net)

Republic of the Philippines

Kingdom of Thailand

Population (2004) Rural Population Urban Population

81.6 million 38 % of total 62 %

63.7 million 68 % of total 32 %

Poverty (% of population below national poverty line)

30 10

GDP (US$ billions) 84.6 163.5

Total Debt (US $ millions) 61,042 51,318

Some Development Indicators

Source: World Bank (2006) & ADRC (2006)

The Rules (Thailand)

Civil Defense Act 1979 and Government Reform in 2002 (eg. DDPM)

Flood Control and Mitigation

Land and Water Use Control (eg. guidelines for watershed and urban development)

Relief and Compensations (Treasury Act of 2003)

Others

The Players (Thailand)

Key Agencies Duties & Responsibilities

Department of Disaster Prevention & Mitigation

Major line agency for urgent assistance to flood victims

Department of Water Resources

Major line agency for flood mitigation, research and national water resource management system

Royal Irrigation Department

Major agency for water provision, storage, maintenance and allocation to agriculture, energy, consumption & industry

Department of Public Works & City Planning

Major agency for city planning and control of construction process

Meteorological Department

Major agency to monitor, forecast and set up early warning system

Ministry of Social Development & Human Security

Lead agency on rehabilitation of flood victims—mental, social and economic healing & recovery

The Rules (Philippines)

PD 1566 (1978) Local Government Code (RA 8185) Land Use Management and Zoning Ordinances

Departments Responsibilities

National Defense Convenes NDCC as necessary and calls on other government agencies and private sector as needed

Public Works & Highway Restore destroyed public structures such as flood control, waterworks, roads, bridges and other vertical and horizontal facilities; provides equipment for rescue, relief and recovery

Transportation & Communication

Restores destroyed communication and transportation facilities such as railroads; organizes national transport services.

Science & Technology (Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services (PAGASA)

Continuing watch on environmental conditions o prepare daily weather forecasts, typhoon watches and flood outlooks

Social Welfare & Development

Extends relief assistance and social services to victims and provide rehabilitation

Agriculture Undertake surveys in disaster-prone areas and actual disaster areas to determine extent of damage of agricultural crops, livestock and fisheries; provide technical assistance to victims

Some NDCC Member Agencies and Area of Responsibilities

Departments Responsibilities

Education, Culture & Sports

Provides assistance in public education and campaign regarding disaster preparedness, prevention and mitigation through integration of relevant subjects in school curriculum; makes school building available as evacuation centers

Finance Issues rules and regulation regarding funding by local government of DCC requirements; with DBM issues rules and regulations on preparation of local government budget and utilization of the 2 % reserve for disaster operations

Interior & Local Government

Oversees organization of local DCCs, the establishment of Disaster Operation Centers of all local governments, and the training of DCC members

Health Provides health services during emergencies and organizes reaction teams; also issues public health warning notices.

Environment & Natural Resources

Responsible for reforestation and control of areas prone to flood, landslide, mudflow and ground subsidence

National Housing Authority

Assessment of housing requirements of displaced persons; provision of temporary housing and rebuilding of destroyed areas.

Some NDCC Member Agencies and Area of Responsibilities

Several indications of improved institutional performance.

The government and the private sectors have been actively collaborating during emergency for mobilizing resources for relief and emergency assistance.

Provisions for Early Warning/Risk & Vulnerability Mapping

Attempts to involve the general public are now being explored through the formation of basin river organization, with a mandate that includes a planning unit for flood mitigation and prevention.

Integration of Disaster Risk management in development programs (policy rhetoric) and Community-based disaster risk management pilot projects Emergence of private sectors (NGOs and Firms) providing financial assistance for livelihood recovery (ex. Siam Cement and Save Andaman; micro credit programs)

Strong Civil Society Groups in Thailand and the Philippines

Institutional Incapacities Poor coordination: fragmented

measures

-Poor coordination across administrative hierarchies delays the timely delivery of services and assistance (e.g Tambon- Provincial)

- National level: no policy coordination (eg DWR and RID)

_ The process of budget preparation and

allocation procedures hampers coordination between local government and line agencies.

- Watershed, rural and urban uses planning are not well articulated with water-related infrastructure projects for flood control

Incomplete Implementation

Incomplete implementation in terms of geographical coverage, unfulfilled promises, and unattained goals is common (eg. Land rehabilitation and livelihood trainings)

Poor prioritization of marginal communities has led to institutional incapacity of the state to bring prevention, mitigation, recovery and even relief operations to where they are, arguably, most needed – the places where the poor and other socially marginalized groups live.

Examples: tribal groups and small fisherfolks

No monitoring and evaluation “After the tragedy, several government

agencies were quick to offer help. But when I returned, everything was still the same”. (Bangkok Post reporter who won award for disaster journalism)

A disaster doesn’t end the day flood water resides and emergency relief operations declare success.

- Protection of interests and a culture of uncritical promotion of performance have institutionalized an incapacity for evaluation and critical reflection

Narrow deliberation - Framing of flood-related disaster

requiring technical fixes - Bias to protect the rapidly urbanizing

and industrial centers shifts flood risks surrounding agricultural-based provinces

Flood Regime Change with Climate Change

More intense, prolonged or frequent flooding

Less intense, shorter and rarer flooding

Objective of Livelihood-Lifestyles relationship with Floods

Depend on Floods

Beneficial up to a threshold of adaptation; Increased risk after“barsha” beneficial floods “ plabob” severe floods

“Lack of floods” disaster

Avoid Floods

Increased risks of disaster

Reduced risk of disaster

Impacts of Altered Flood Regimes Depends on Livelihood & Lifestyles

Impediments of Institutional Reforms

Misplaced emphasis on emergency relief to the detriment of crafting institutions to reduce vulnerabilities and prevent disaster (the politics of disaster)

Self-serving belief that disaster management is a technical problem that calls for expert judgement that systematically exclude the interests of the most socially vulnerable groups

Overemphasis on structural measures which again and again have shown to be more about redistributing risk in time and place rather than reducing risks (turfing)

Failure to integrate flood disaster as inevitable challenges into normal development planning in flood-prone region (from rhetoric to action).

FUNCTIONS

PHASES OF DISASTER CYCLEMitigation(Well before)

Preparedness(Before)

Emergency(During)

Rehabilitation(After)

DeliberationWhat should be done?

Active participation in district area planning, river-basin management, disaster preparedness plans and water-related disaster policies are some of the avenues for engagement

CoordinationWho is responsible?

Cross-scale coordination among agencies and stakeholders is important for flood mitigation, particularly in the design, implementation and monitoring and evaluation of program and policies that help address the underlying causes of flood disaster risks. Framework for private sectors to help finance recovery and rehabilitation (insurance and micro finance schemes)

ImplementationHow was it done?

Acknowledging role for communities in disaster management creates opportunities to broaden participation on the one hand, and improve accountability and responsiveness of

state’s institutions on the other. EvaluationWas it done well?

Instituting monitoring and evaluation mechanisms in disaster risk management may also facilitate institutional learning among different agencies. Performance evaluation among different agencies may provide institutional incentives to be become better and accountable.

Ways Forward

Thank You!

Work in progress…….