FRANKFURT, Germany—Four years and six board meetings after its creation, not a single project has been approved under the P1-billion People’s Survival Fund (PSF) in the annual budget, according to the Climate Change Commission (CCC).
In a forum at the Asian Development Bank (ADB) Annual Governor’s Meeting here, CCC Deputy Executive Director Romell Antonio O. Cuenca disclosed that upon learning that the PSF remains untouched up to now, the agency has moved to assist local government units (LGUs) meet the fund’s requirements.
“I asked the people there how many projects have you approved? They said nothing yet. Why? That was my question. That’s what we’re ramping up now,” Cuenca said. “We have to strike a balance against fiduciary responsibility that we are not going to throw away this money with the balance of not putting in too many hurdles, not putting in too many hoops for civil-society organizations, local governments to jump through to access the fund.”
The PSF was created by Republic Act 10174 as an annual fund intended for LGUs and accredited local/community organizations to implement climate-change adaptation projects that will better equip vulnerable communities to deal with the impacts of climate change.
It supplements the annual appropriations allocated by relevant government agencies and LGUs for climate change-related programs and projects.
Cuenca said some LGUs and accredited non-governmental organizations (NGOs)submitted projects; but these often did not meet the requirements set by the PSF.
This is the reason, he said, the CCC is urging LGUs to seek advice from the national pool of technical experts to help them improve their project proposals.
The CCC is also trying to improve the processes of approving projects. He said there are already a number of projects in the pipeline for PSF funding.
“We’re actually discussing where we can loosen up some of the requirements, or even look at the option of approving projects in principle, subject to compliance with some of the other documentary requirements, which, some of them, do not need to be there in the first place.
That’s where we define the balance now,” Cuenca said. The Philippine government programmed at least P1 billion into the PSF, which will be sourced from the national budget.
The allocation may be augmented by mobilizing funding sources, such as counterpart LGUs, the private sector and individuals who support adaptation initiatives.
The PSF Board is headed by the secretary of the Department of Finance. The members are the vice chairman of the Climate Change Commission, secretary of the Department of Budget and Management, and the director general of the National Economic and Development Authority.
The Board also includes the secretary of the Department of the Interior and Local Government, chairman of the Philippine Commission on Women, representative from academe and scientific community, business sector and NGOs. The CCC provides support as secretariat to the Board.