MANILA, January 9, 2013Senator Loren Legarda today lauded the Department of Budget and Management’s allocation of P8.1 billion to the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS), and the Department of Agriculture – National Irrigation Authority (DA-NIA) for flood-control and water resource management projects.
Legarda, Chair of the Senate Committee on Climate Change and United Nations Regional Champion for Disaster Risk Reduction and Climate Change Adaptation for Asia-Pacific, urged the said institutions to immediately and effectively implement these disaster preparedness programs.
“Flooding has been the perennial problem in the Philippines, and with the growth of our cities, the problem is only becoming worse. There is a great need for continuous implementation of flood control projects such as drainage protection works along national roads and bridges, drainage improvement and watershed projects, as well as estero clean-up drives. We must make sure that projects especially for flood control are appropriately designed and efficiently carried out as soon as possible to avoid death and destruction in times of incessant rains” she explained.
“Efforts to improve our irrigation systems are important as well because we want the Philippines to become self-sufficient in rice production as soon as possible,” she remarked.
“Our call for an increased budget for disaster preparedness and agricultural improvement has been heard. Let us make sure that all the agencies involved carry out their mandates especially now that we are experiencing one typhoon after the next. There is no room for us to waste time and resources,” Legarda concluded.
