Thirty-nine local government units in the country are now under a “state of calamity” following the ill effects of the dry spell this year, the Interior Department and the National Economic and Development Authority said Tuesday.
Interior Secretary Mel Senen Sarmiento said that concerned local government units can utilize their respective local calamity funds and tap other available national government funds to help mitigate the effects of the extreme weather phenomenon.
These LGUs are: Region 2—the provinces of Isabela and Quirino; Region IVB—the towns of Looc, Magsaysay and Paluan, Occidental Mindoro; Region 9—the town of Titay and Zamboanga City; Region 10—Bukidnon province, and the towns of Libona, Bukidnon, and Kapatagan, Lanao del Norte; Region 11—province of Davao del Sur.
For Region 12, the province of Cotabato and the towns of Matalam, Alamada, Carmen, Antipas, Banisilan, Arakan and Pikit, and the cities of Cotabato and Kidapawan; Koronadal City and its component barangays Brgy. Carpenter Hill and Brgy. San Roque; General Santos City and the towns of Banga, Surallah, Tampakan and Tantangan.
For CAR, Alfonso Lista in Ifugao; and for ARMM—the province of Maguindanao and the towns of Datu Piang and Pagalungan; Upi in North Maguindanao, the province of Basilan and Lamitan City.
Sarmiento said that Section 21 of Republic Act 10121 provides that local governments have to set aside not less than five percent of their yearly budget for a local calamity fund or what is now known as the local disaster risk reduction management fund in their yearly budgets.
He explained that the LDRRMF shall cover 30 percent lump-sum allocation for quick response fund or standby fund for relief and recovery programs, and 70 percent allocation for disaster prevention and mitigation, preparedness, response, rehabilitation and recovery.
LGUs may also access the P19-billion national calamity fund, a lump sum fund appropriated under the General Appropriations Act to cover aid, relief, and rehabilitation services to communities/areas affected by manmade and natural calamities like the El Niño and the Quick Response Fund, a built-in budgetary allocation that represent pre-disaster or standby funds for agencies in order to immediately assist areas stricken by catastrophes and crises like El Niño.
He also urged LGUs to apply for the Peoples’ Survival Fund from their regional DILG offices.
The Interior Department asked LGUs to create and prepare El Niño local task forces and mitigation and adaptation plans, conducting of rapid damage and needs assessment and establishment of firebreaks in areas most likely to be affected by forest fires.