Political will needed for success of ICM projects
The success of the Integrated Coastal Management (ICM) does not rely only on the physical change in the community as well as the structural change which includes the residents and government leaders. Political will is also needed for the success of the program.
Dr. Chua Thia-Teng, regional program director of the Partnerships in Environmental Management of the Seas of East Asia (PEMSEA), said conflicts always arise when there are changes but it should pursue the common vision of the stakeholders.
Chua explained that the implementation of ICM projects is not an easy activity. It will take some time to realize its goal. The changes should not matter only on the physical changes in the community but at the same with political leaders. There should be governance system that adopts the concept of sustainable development, Chua said
The success of the program is also measured when there is "less inter-agency conflict" from among the implementing agencies and the stakeholders. The level of understanding of the community must increase. The political leaders and community will learn from each other. They must know what they want. There should be an application of integrated approach in managing human activities in the land and sea, said Chua.
Dr. Chua along with Prof. Raphael Lotilla, former energy secretary and now PEMSEA Resource Facility executive director, yesterday signed a memorandum of agreement with Guimaras Gov. Felipe Nava, DENR 6 regional director Lormelyn Claudio for the ICM program.
PEMSEA was first established in 1993 as the Regional Programme on the Prevention and Management of Marine Pollution in the East Asian Seas. In 1998, it entered in its second phase as the Regional Programme on Partnerships in Environmental Management for the Seas of the East Asia. Participating countries are Cambodia, Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Indonesia, Japan, Lao Peoples Democratic Republic, Peoples Republic of China, Philippines, Republic of Korea, Singapore, Thailand, Timor- Leste and Vietnam.
The program must allow stakeholders involvement and participation. Coordination from the different agencies is a must but only for those agencies that is really working with the stakeholders. It must follow the coastal development framework. There should also be proper coordination of inter-agency activities on coastal management to avoid duplication and waste of resources, said Chua.
The presence of the political will among the political leaders is a must to protect the lives and properties of the community from natural and man-made calamities. At the same time, the program will reduce poverty and increase employment and raise the standard of living of coastal inhabitants, said Chua.
The province of Guimaras was chosen as one of PEMSEA recipients because of the political will of its leaders as well as interest and cooperation shown by the stakeholders. The oil spill incident has also proven the capacity to integrate and cooperate with the different agencies, he said.
The other recipient PEMSEA areas in the country are Batangas, Cavite and Bataan.