Dear Partners and Friends,
Greetings of peace, solidarity and resiliency!
Here are latest updates on our continuing assistance to five barangays – Bonbon, Carmen, Gusa, Indahag and Iponan – either badly hit by Typhoon Sendong or accommodated flood survivors after the evacuees (or internally displaced persons) were moved out of the congested evacuation centers inside school premises and covered courts. Also included in this update are results of major activities being conducted by the Multi-sectoral Group headed by Archbishop Ledesma and the regional director of DSWD, Atty. Araceli F. Solamillo.
On Relief Goods Distribution
Another set of blankets and kitchenware from the Rotary Club of Taree, Australia were distributed to tent communities: Tent 1 (near Indahag Elementary School): 3 boxes of kitchenware, shoes, books, and 62 blankets; Tent 2 (Lowboy, Indahag): 3 boxes of kitchenware, educational materials, and 67 blankets; Tent 3 (Regional Science High School): 2 boxes of kitchenware, used clothing and 37 blankets. Around 350 blankets were distributed to the first 350 families transferred to their permanent shelters on 25 April 2012.
Some knitted blankets from the Rotary Club of Taree were distributed to the tribal communities who are mostly Higaonons and Manobos in the upland areas of Misamis Oriental, specifically Claveria and Gingoog City. At least 50 blankets were distributed to a tribal community in Barangay Lianga, Surigao del Sur.
In behalf of the survivor-families and communities, we are expressing our warmest thanks to the Rotary Club of Australia, with special commendation to Mr. Barry Hicks for helping ensure actual distribution of the goods.
On Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WaSH)
The need for regular water supply of Tent Community 1 in Barangay Indahag has been successfully addressed. This through the support of Kuya Fish Campaign headed by Issey Tanaka, a group of youth volunteers from Japan that gave them funds for the purchase and installation of a deep well pump. The tent residents were very happy being provided with at least 1,500 liters of water everyday. It’s still 2,500 liters short of the required daily water consumption, but surely a big help as this year’s summer, reports said, is said to be much warmer than the previous ones.
The ever supportive Barangay Council of Indahag has again expressed to share use of their water supply from the barangay reservoir during night time. The City Health Office leading the WaSH cluster and BLGU-Indahag have scheduled the water quality control test to ensure safe drinking water.
The Hygiene Promotion Training for the WaSH cluster leaders of the two tent communities was conducted by the Catholic Relief Services (CRS) with the City Health and Balay Mindanaw. At the end of the activity was the distribution of cleaning kits.
On Livelihood / Social Enterprise Development
BMFI facilitated the conduct of skills inventory with the tent communities. In Tent Community 1, majority are high school level, 17 college graduates, 4 completed vocational courses, and 5 elementary level.
The women were into different work prior to Sendong: teacher, data encoder, dressmaker, sales girls, cashiers, reflexologists, and ambulant vendors. The men were previously construction workers/laborers, drivers and collectors.
As to skills, many of them know cooking, selling, driving, electronics, carpentry and construction work and running a small business. In case of opportunities, majority of them would want to be ambulant vendors, laborers or factory workers.
In Tent Community 2, majority has graduated high school, 1 college level, and the rest have completed elementary education. As to employment experience, most of the breadwinners (fathers) were security guards, construction workers, bakers, drivers and ambulant vendors. The women were into doing pedicure-manicure and selling of goods.
As to preferred possible source of income, majority cited running a small business, to have a capital to buy their own materials for cosmetology and to open a sari-sari store. Others wanted to establish a cafeteria or eatery, while some expressed to raise hogs in their backyards.
At present, BMFI is considering to introduce the technology of urban gardening and hollow block-making activities. This is based on the demand for hollow blocks for the construction of permanent shelters, which according to Habitat would need at least 2,500 blocks per one the quadruplex unit.
The International Labor Organization (ILO) offered their capacity building program for Sendong survivors to the tent communities. With the consolidated result of the skills inventory, they thought of providing skills training on hollow blocks, including materials to readily jumpstart the said initiative.
The rug making initiative has helped the survivors, especially the women, who sell 3 rugs for P100. Their products being labeled as made by Sendong women survivors, slowly sales have increased. They are, however, having shortage of used clothing, which are their raw materials for making the rugs. Others have started to buy used cotton T-shirts from ukay-ukay vendors at three for P25; this way, they still earn profit.
On Network and Partnership Building
The UN-OCHA facilitated a three-day training on Cluster Coordination, Assessment and Information Management at the Regional DSWD Office to help enhance or reinforce the capacities of government partners undertaking cluster responsibilities in response to Tropical Cyclone Sendong in Region X.
The participants consisting of representatives from the various government agencies and CSOs were able to formulate cluster-specific questions to be included in the conduct of Initial Rapid Needs Assessment (IRNA). This questionnaire will be used in the first 72 hours (the golden hour) of the disaster. Another needs assessment questionnaire will be used after six weeks, this they called the Multi Cluster Rapid Needs Assessment (MICRNA). This will help obtain additional information in under-assessed and under-served areas.
BMFI continuously assists Archbishop Toni Ledesma, who heads the Multi-sectoral Group, with the Regional DSWD Director, in Cagayan de Oro. Two sets of housing summits have been conducted to provide a forum so all stakeholders be informed about the recent developments as far as permanent housing is concerned. During the latest forum, the issue on land gaps was discussed. This culminated with an action plan on how to help the government address such a gap.
BMFI is also actively involved in the conduct of Post- Disaster Needs Assessment (PDNA)-Damage and Loss Assessment (DaLA) and Human Recovery Needs Assessment (HRNA) at the regional level. This is with the leadership of the Office of Civil Defense (OCD) and the Regional Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (DRRMC). The sectors being assessed as to the effects and impacts of Sendong are productive sector (agriculture, tourism and industry), infrastructure (transportation, power, water and telecommunication), social sector (housing, education, health) and cross-sectoral concerns. The assessment culminated with the workshop on priority reconstruction and recovery needs. According to the OCD, this is the first time for the government to conduct the PDNA-DaLA without international consultants, just optimizing the local specialists in each of the concerned agencies with Balay Mindanaw.
Next Steps
Staff development on DRRM, participatory capacities and vulnerability assessment and strategies in community-based DRRM planning will be conducted on 23-25 May with Mr. Arthur Neame, BMFI DRRMRB Program Consultant.
Balay Mindanaw will be implementing Jollibee’s Busog-Lusog-Talino (BLT), a daily lunch feeding with 40 severely malnourished pupils in each of the BM-assisted barangays. This will start in June until September (or for 136 days).
Establishment of community wellness centers in eight partner barangays, with the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG), is now being discussed with the office of Secretary Jess Robredo.
On May 20 to June 15 will be the implementation of Cash for Work/Food for Work program with the World Food Program (WFP). Declogging of drainage, and clearing/cleaning up and rejuvenation of damaged mangrove areas in coastal zones of Barangay Bonbon are the proposals submitted by the partner barangays.
Training on Urban Container Gardening (UCG) and the fourth round of shelter repair kits distribution with Habitat for Humanity will be done come first week of June.
Balay Mindanaw was tasked to help run the Disaster Response Management Program of the Birhen sa Kota Foundation, Inc. with Archbishop Ledesma. Program planning is scheduled between June and July.
Finally, sets of educational supplies (bags, notebooks, crayons, pens) and some medicine will be given to the tent communities; this was intentionally set aside for the opening of classes in June.