Dios marhay na aga saindo gabos, mga namomootan kong taga-Sorsogon.

            It is my special pleasure to be with all of you today. I savor it like your famous pili nut—manâgumom, or the natok or gata, malinamnam—as we hopped in from Legazpi City.

            As you know, we in HUDCC, together with Sorsogon City Mayor Leovic Dioneda and U.N.-Habitat, are hosting this Program Management Committee Meeting of the Millennium Development Goal Fund, or MDG-F 1656.

            Three years ago, the HUDCC, with support from our U.N. partners and other national government agencies under the MDG-F Joint Programme, took on the challenge to design, build and showcase a climate change-resilient human settlement in a coastal city.

            We knew that venturing into this initiative will not be easy, but we also knew that it is imperative and urgent to save the lives of millions of Filipinos, especially those living in highly vulnerable settlements.

            We have seen lives and properties worth in billions destroyed because of our vulnerability to the fury of nature. We have witnessed with our own eyes thousands of people left homeless in such a catastrophe, with some of them seeking refuge in cold and damp makeshift shelters.

            Sino ba ang makalilimot sa pinsalang idinulot ni Ondoy at Frank noong 2009?  At ngayon, mahigit dalawang linggo na ang nakakaraan pagkatapos tayong salantain ng bagyong Pedring at Quiel, may mga bahay pa rin sa Bulacan at Pampanga na lubog sa baha at mga pamilyang nasa evacuation centers. Ang kanilang mga kabuhayan ay halos inanod ng agos.

            Alam natin na ang mga kalamidad na tulad nito ay magpapatuloy.  Ayon sa PAG-ASA, mahigit kumulang dalawampung bagyo ang tumatama sa ating bansa kada taon.  At dahil sa climate change, palakas nang palakas ang hangin at ulan na dulot ng mga ito.

            Kaya, hindi tayo dapat magsawalang-bahala. Sa bawat bagyong dumadaan at namiminsala, kailangan nating maging mas matatag at mas malikhain sa paghahanap ng solusyon sa pag-iwas o pagbawas ng pinsalang dala nito.

            Hindi lingid sa atin na marami sa ating mga siyudad at munisipalidad sa Pilipinas ay walang sapat na kakayanang harapin ang mga usapin ng climate change.

            Kaya ang HUDCC bilang pangunahing ahensya ng pamahalaan sa pabahay at urban development ay lubos na pinapahalagahan ang proyektong tinatawag na “designing and building with nature a climate change-resilient human settlement in a coastal city”.

            The Climate Change Act and its links and synergies with the Urban Development and Housing Act or UDHA constitute the platform from which we take on the opportunities to realize sustainable shelter development for the poor, either at the national and local levels.

            Ikinagagalak kong sabihin sa inyo na ang Sorsogon City ang kauna-unahang siyudad na pagsasagawaan ng proyektong ito.

            Sa pamumuno ni Mayor Leovic Dioneda at sa pagtutulungan ng mga ahensiya ng gobyerno sa nasyonal at lokal na pamahalaan, ating isinasagawa ang isang “demonstration project.” Ito ay magsisilbing gabay sa iba pang siyudad at munisipalidad, laluna ang mga lugar na itinuturing na disaster-prone o high risk areas, sa paghahanda upang harapin ang mga usapin ng climate change.

            We shall be witnessing the fruits of this demonstration project today and tomorrow. For now, allow me to share with you the highlights of this project.

            First, we “laymanized” climate science for the people to understand and appreciate the issues of climate change.

            Sa pagtutulungan ng pamahalaang nasyonal at lokal, mga NGO, P.O. at ang U.N.-Habitat, ipinaliwanag natin sa lahat ng sektor, laluna sa mga taong direktang maaapektuhan, kung ano ang climate change at ang maaaring epekto nito, at kung ano ang kanilang magagawa para mapigilan o mabawasan ang mga dulot na pinsala.

            Second, the City Government of Sorsogon took the lead in identifying expected or projected climate change impacts at the local level and determined their effects on the lives of the poor.

            Having done this, the city government then localized the housing policies and guidelines on site planning and house constructions with specific attention to local climate change scenarios, urban development and housing trends, and the poor’s capacity to cope with disasters and extreme events.

            Sa prosesong ito, ang lokal na pamahalaan ng sorsogon ay nakikipag-ugnay sa iba’t ibang sektor, higit sa lahat sa mga mahihirap na pamilya at komunidad, upang lubos na ipaalam sa kanila ang mga panganib at katumbas na aksyong dapat gawin.

            Particular attention was given to the special needs of women, children, and the elderly who are usually the most vulnerable during calamities and emergencies.

            Isina-alang-alang din sa prosesong ito ang mga opsyon sa pabahay na naaayon sa pinansyal na kapasidad at kakayahan ng mahihirap nating mga kababayan.

            At sa ngayon, nagtutulungan ang HUDCC at ang local government ng Sorsogon upang ma-institutionalize ang mga prosesong kanilang ginawa. Sa paraang ito, ang mga pangangailangan ng mga mahihirap ay mabibigyang priyoridad sa pagpaplano ng siyudad.

            We have started mainstreaming into Sorsogon City’s local land use plan and the comprehensive sectoral plan strategies for building climate change-resilient communities.

            Soon, urban and housing development projects in this city will be rendered “climate-proof,” that is to say, the poor may now dwell in safe and secure shelters.

            Ang proyektong ito ay simula pa lamang ng isang mahabang proseso upang makatugon sa epekto ng climate change.  With its success in its initial stages, however, we have proven once again that determination, moral and political resolve are effective weapons to fight any challenge as great as climate change.

            In addition, we can cope with climate change if we just try to make good use of our available natural resources, which are in abundance. Equally important is the manner we protect our natural resources.

            Ako po ay taos-pusong nagpapasalamat sa lahat ng ahensiya ng gobyerno, nasyonal man o lokal, sa kanilang suporta sa proyektong ito. Kabilang na dito ang NEDA, DILG, DSWD, PAG-ASA, DOST at iba pa.

            My sincerest thanks also go to U.N.-Habitat for the technical assistance and support during the implementation of the project, and to the U.N. system in the Philippines namely, the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), Food and Agriculture Office (FAO), International Labor Organization (ILO), and the World Health Organization (who), for trusting us in this partnership.

            To the government of Spain and AECID (Agencia Española de Cooperacion Internacional Para el Desarollo), we sincerely acknowledge that our partnership is essential in our pursuit of MDG goals. Thank you so much for staying beside us in this very significant project.

            Mayor Dioneda, I know that leading Sorsogon City in this trailblazing and innovative work to address climate change is not an easy task. Huwag kang susuko, Mayor. Dakol pa ang satuyang gigibuhon! We still have a lot to do!

            I assure you that HUDCC and U.N.-Habitat and our partner agencies will always be behind you in this noble endeavor.

            To the people of Sorsogon, dakulaon na Dios mabalos! Marami pong salamat sa inyong aktibong pakikilahok at pagbibigay ng magandang halimbawa kung paano haharapin ang pagsubok na dala ng climate change.

            Sa bawat hakbang na inyong ginagawa at sa bawat pagpupursige ninyong magkaisa sa pagtatayo ng climate change-resilient communities, hindi lang buhay ng marami nating kababayan ang inililigtas ninyo, kundi pati na rin ang susunod na henerasyon.

            My challenge for you is this: keep on working, keep on doing good, even if others won’t, even if others can’t.

            Maraming salamat po ulit sa inyong mainit na pagtanggap at mabuhay tayong lahat!​