A lawmaker on Wednesday called on participants to the First National Biodiversity Congress to take Congress leaders to the task of increasing financing for biodiversity in the Philippines.
In a speech, Occidental Mindoro Rep. Josephine Ramirez Y. Sato said the Philippines has one of the most comprehensive governing laws on the environment and biodiversity, yet, none of these laws provide the much-needed funding support for implementation.
“The Philippines practically has laws governing air, water, sea freshwater, forest, agricultural lands, but we have yet to see these policies translated to substantial, actual and institutional resource allocation for real and sustained investments in rehabilitation, conservation and protection of the country’s natural resources,” she said.
A former governor of Occidental Mindoro, Sato underscored the findings of the Biodiversity Financing Initiative (Biofin) that the implementation of the Philippine Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan 2015-2028 will require financing of at least P24 billion annually until 2028, but the projected expenditures is estimated at a measly P5 billion a year based on the annual budget allocation by Congress. This, she said, leaves behind a financing gap of P19 billion a year.
“For varying reasons, including persistent poverty, the lack of environment accountability as well as competing development priorities—appropriate financing allocation for biodiversity has not been achieved by the Philippines,” she pointed out.
According to the lawmaker, an affirmative action for the country’s environment must be supported by real, tangible and sustained resources.
National government budget allocation for biodiversity protection and conservation can be augmented by local government units, as well as the private sector through various programs and projects.
Sato reiterated her call to employ the concept of bayanihan, which she introduced to participants during her presentation in the Third Biofin Regional Workshop in Almaty, Kazakhstan, recently.
“The spirit of Bayanihan is exactly what we want to serve as a frame of mind and action for biodiversity protection, conservation as well as for the other initiatives that were presented in the last three days,” she said.
There is an urgent need to come together for the Philippine environment to bring together all heroic efforts and bring to the table scalable models that work, Sato said.
“More important, I urge each and every one to be part of a Bayanihan for for Biodiversity Financing,” she said.