Action Ready Climate Knowledge to Improve Disaster Risk Management for Smallholder Farmers in the Philippines

Improve the value of information flows between PAGASA and key decision makers involved in managing climate and weather risk of small holder farmers

Program Title	Action Ready Climate Knowledge to Improve Disaster Risk Management for Smallholder Farmers in the Philippines
Project Leaders	Juan M. Pulhin & Canesio D. Predo (Co- Project Leader)
Implementing Agency	Interdisciplinary Studies Center for Integrated Natural Resources and Environment Management (IDSC-INREM), University of the Philippines Los Baños
Cooperating Agencies	South Australian Research and Development Institute; Charles Sturt University; Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical & Astronomical Services Administration; Philippines Department of Agriculture: Agricultural Training Institute; Philippine Institute of Development Studies; and Mindoro State College of Agriculture and Technology
Funding Agency	Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research
Project Site	Oriental Mindoro
Discipline	Climate Change Adaptation, Disaster Risk Management, Valuation, Crop Modelling
Sector	Staple crops/grains
Objective	Improve the value of information flows between PAGASA and key decision makers involved in managing climate and weather risk of small holder farmers

Project Overview

The case for increased investment in disaster risk reduction (DRR) and climate change adaptation (CCA) in the Philippines is compelling. The environment in both urban and rural areas is subject to extreme weather events, which are expected in many regions to become more intense under climate change. Although the challenges are substantial, much is being done on DRR and CCA by the Philippine Government at a national and local scale in partnership with NGOs and donor countries. There is widespread support in the Philippines for the mandated approach of strengthening national agencies to equip Local Government Units (LGUs) and Community Based Organizations (CBOs) to deliver Disaster Risk Reduction and Climate Change Adaptation. Moreover, such a strategy corresponds closely with the Australian Aid agenda: promoting prosperity, reducing poverty and enhancing stability by working in partnership with Philippine agencies to reinforce the responsibility of the Philippine government to plan and fund their own economic development and poverty reduction strategies. It is in the delivery of DRR and CCA that the proposed project will make its contribution by improving the value of information flows between PAGASA and key decision makers involved in managing climate and weather risk of small holder farmers.

It is without doubt that the meteorological agency, PAGASA, has the international support and internal skills and resources to provide an expanding set of weather and climate information. The challenge addressed by this project is to improve the use and usefulness of this information to the risk management decisions made by small holder farmers. PAGASA is involved in many development projects as a resource for climate information. In 2013 the Department of Agriculture increased commitment and emphasis to a Climate-Smart Agriculture Extension System led by the Agricultural Training Institute (ATI) in partnership with LGUs, NGOs and the private sector. The ATI has 16 regional training centers and is responsible for training agricultural extension staff who are employed by the LGUs. Although not the only end-users of information, we intend to work with ATI to improve their extension activities and obtain a testbed for concepts and material and a mechanism for out-scaling the project results.

Specific Objectives