Community-Led, Citywide Settlement Profiling And Upgrading As Evidence-Based Approach To Land Governance:

T h e C a s e O f M u n t i n l u p a C i t y , P h i l i p p i n e s

Metro Manila• the Philippines National Capital

Region (NCR)• 16 cities, 1 municipality• In 2010, Metro Manila

Development Authority (MMDA) estimated that a total of 556,526 informal settler families (ISFs)

I. Project Background

44.% of total population is urbanized (2015)*

data.worldbank.org

The Informal SettlementsNo security of tenure• Lack of basic infrastructure• Limited access to capital• Mostly vulnerable to natural hazards and high risk

areas

Oplan Likas• an initiative of the government to move 104,000 ISFs from

high risk areas using half a billion pesos.• After three and a half years only 20,000 units were builtFactors:• Lack of affordable land & housing• Land constraintsThe Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Councilestimated a 1.7 million housing backlog in Metro Manila in 2016Challenge:The magnitude of the problem renders the traditional project-based approach ineffectual. There is an urgent need to shift from project-based to programmatic approach to reach scale in a timely manner.

Key features:1. Citywide in scope as it maps out all informal settlements in families in the area;2. Community-led;3. A partnership among city stakeholders;4. Coordinated by the local or city government;5. A citywide pooling of funds mobilized from various sources; and6. An integration of solutions to land and housing problems with strategies to improve the socio-economic status of the ISFs.

CITYWIDE COMMUNITY UPGRADING STRATEGY(also known as CDA or Citywide Development Approach to Informal Settlements

Upgrading)

A multi-stakeholder collaboration

4 BARANGAYS AS PILOT FOR CITYWIDEDEVELOPMENT APPROACH

SUCAT

BULI

CUPANG

ALABANG

Muntinlupa City• located in the southernmost part of Metro

Manila and has a 11km Laguna de Bay shoreline.

• Accessible to Manila Central Business District in approximately one hour, it houses many commercial establishments and luxurious residential complexes

• nearly half of Muntinlupa’s 460,000 residents belong to the urban poor sector.

• Based on 2007 LGU data, Muntinlupa has over 27,000 ISFsin 241 ISF communities scattered across 9 barangays.

• LGU prioritizes 9,000 ISF living in waterways and along the Lakeshore

1. Collection of secondary data and provide analysis on housing needs and available resources;2. Conduct of orientation and training of local government units (LGUs), communities, non-government organizations (NGOs) and people’s organizations (POs) on community mapping and profiling; 3. Collection of primary data through community mapping and profiling in four (4) barangays;4. Encoding, analysis and validation gathered data;5. Conduct of savings orientation, initiate network formation through barangay shelter development planning;6. Consolidation of barangay shelter development plans into citywide shelter development plan; and 7. Prioritization of community housing project design and development.

The project deliverables include:

PARTICIPATIONInclusion and Partnership

Learning and Action

Adaptation and

Sustainability

Participatory Assessment

Participatory Planning

Community-led Implementatio

n

Community management

and evaluation

Monitoring and

Evaluation

Capacity-building and Organizing

Part II: Planning Approach and Framework

Data Collection

Courtesy Calls Barangay Assembly Settlements Profiling

- Visit to barangay local govt- Establish initial partnership and engagement- Formalize mapping activities with the settlements in their barangay

- Orientation of the organized and non-organized communities in the barangay- Introduction and initial mapping with key leaders of the communities

- This is done during the Barangay assembly- Preliminary identification of Settlements and basic information of the settlements (i.e. population, boundaries, issues, leadership status- Identify pilot communities

Data Collection

Area Visits Spot Mapping Scaling and Structure Mapping

- assess initial site conditions- identifying land marks- locating boundaries using GPS device

- strcuture identification using base maps prepared after the ocular visit- confirmation of information like use and type of structure, no. of occupants, etc.

- measuring of houses and translating them into the maps using color-coded papers-FGDs are organized for completion and validation of Settlements Profile- household level surveys

Data Analysis

Consolidation of Primary and Secondary Data

- Encoding and digitization of all primary and secondary data using Windows Excel, Google Earth, AutoCAD and STDM - Information collected was categorized into base data, demographic, social and organizational data, and spatial and physical data

Presentation and Validation of Data

- The consolidated and digitized data are now then presented and validated in an activity participated by the Barangay LGU, the communities, etc.- Using the Situational Analysis and Quadrant Categorizing System, the communities assesstheir situation based on an agreed set criteriato better provide corresponding strategies and interventions for settlements development

Categories of Data

Base Data Demographic and Social Data Spatial and Physical

- includes image data of the position or location of the structures or dwellings, as well as key infrastructures

- this is the information coming from the surveys conducted using the settlements profile form and the household survey form

these are data showing the constraints of the physical environment that may largely factor in the type of development to be undertaken in a particular area

Participatory Planning

Barangay Shelter Planning

- This refers to the actual barangay and city level planning using the analyzed and digitized data by the community.- Community networks are formed- Based on the data, priority communities were identified for Project Development to be presented and proposed to City LGU and Housing Agencies

Part III: Outcomes and Impacts

• Related to this, the local government with the communities can formulate adaptation strategies either for in-city or off-city relocation

• Formation of a Technical Working Group in Barangay Sucat that includes the Socialized Housing Finance Corporation (SHFC), City Engineering Office and City Assessor’s for the project development in five priority communities

• The communities have gained greater awareness of their own situation through their active participation in the mapping process; They were able to determine long term community needs (such as land acquisition or housing) as well as short term priorities (small upgrading, community organizing)

• Many communities that have been oriented on the community savings program have already started to implement it;

• The local governments, especially in Barangay Sucat, appreciated the data and maps generated by the mapping activity which they can use in their development programs. in a way, the information has helped authorities set their budget based on real needs of communities and is seen to serve as aid in developing their barangay shelter plans

Part III: Outcomes and Impacts• The CDA project created a venue or platform wherein all stakeholders can

collaborate in the planning of the city;• The platform served as means to influence the creation of the city’s land-use

plan• Also, the creation of this platform and formal links for collaboration has led

to the continuation of the mapping activities in the other four barangays of the city with the support of the city government of Muntinlupa and of the UN-Habitat and Global Land Tool Network under the STDM Project

§ Other Philippine cities such as in Talisay in Cebu and Davao in Mindanao became interested and sought to adopt the people-centered approach to mapping and upgrading

– This enabled the linkage with several institutions such as the Geodetic Engineers of the Philippines National Capital Region (GEP-NCR) and University of the Philippines Department of Geodetic Engineering (UPDGE)

– The STDM Project seen to generate a citywide data for Muntinlupa City

Heritage and Community Mapping Workshop in Talisay City

Part IV: Ways Forward • Ongoing strengthening of networks of leaders formed after the conduct of the

mapping activities• Consolidation of District 1 and 2 mapping information to come up with a citywide

profile of informal settlement communities for Muntinlupa and present this to the city local housing board for incorporation to the city shelter plan and for project development

• Mapping team to seek training in the use of tools or strategies to help improve analysis of data generated (e.g to lessen data discrepancies or inconsistencies)

Part IV: Conclusion• The Citywide Development Approach (CDA) to informal settlements upgrading in Muntinlupa District II has demonstrated that without accurate and comprehensive community information, neither communities nor governments will be able to overcome the challenges they face and work towards the eradication of poverty in the country. •The results of community-led mapping and settlements profiling enabled the initiation of community formation of technical working groups among mapped ISF communities which capacitated them in:

• asserting their right towards land security; •created a venue for close collaboration among various stakeholders in settlements development which further formed connections locally and internationally;• and paved way for the LGU to recognize the potentials of CDA in addressing issues on land and poverty

•the introduction and use of collaborative land information tool such as STDM is seen to boost participation from communities, as they readily see outcomes in the form of maps that relate their individual information to their location or the land they live in.

• The Citywide Development Approach (CDA) to informal settlements upgrading in Muntinlupa District II has demonstrated that without accurate and comprehensive community information, neither communities nor governments will be able to overcome the challenges they face and work towards the eradication of poverty in the country. •The results of community-led mapping and settlements profiling enabled the initiation of community formation of technical working groups among mapped ISF communities which capacitated them in:

• asserting their right towards land security; •created a venue for close collaboration among various stakeholders in settlements development which further formed connections locally and internationally;• and paved way for the LGU to recognize the potentials of CDA in addressing issues on land and poverty

•the introduction and use of collaborative land information tool such as STDM is seen to boost participation from communities, as they readily see outcomes in the form of maps that relate their individual information to their location or the land they live in.

Thank you!