MAPping the Future
November 1, 2010
Philippine Daily Inquirer

Work Confers Dignity

Alongside the RH Bill, no other issue has aroused more furor than the P21 billion Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) Fund wedged in the budget of the DSWD. Based solely on decibel rating, the Antis had been winning. The Pro group’s statements had been weak and sparse.
Those opposed to the CCT have articulated their arguments both clearly and passionately: the CCT is a dole that encourages mendicancy; it is too big for the DSWD, based on its dismal record, to handle; misses in targeting the poor because of corruption will happen on a grand scale; Government’s role is effective governance, not charity; and after the well dries out, what will we have to show? The response: the CCT, as the name suggests, imposes conditions, hence, it is not a dole- out; the DSWD is now much more prepared for the task; it’s been tried elsewhere and it worked- school enrollment increased and infant mortality dropped. Dr. Jacqui Badcock, UN Resident Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative in the Philippines, in a recent talk before Manila Rotarians, pointed out Brazil as an example. Asked if the UN is now promoting dole-outs, she said that it was her understanding that “there will be some livelihood component in the program.”

But there’s the rub. The opposition has argued that if the livelihood component is as vague as has been stated, then, there is really no program. Unless spelled out for scrutiny by the public, the perception that the CCT is one big dole will persist.
What livelihood or employment program might we suggest? Fortunately, the Millenium Development Goals (MDG) Case Studies cite one very appropriate project for the Philippines. It is the rainwater catchment or collectors, one of the projects in India’s National Rural Employment Guarantee Act. NREGA guarantees one hundred days of employment every year to adult members of any rural household, including women, willing to do public work related unskilled manual work. The case study described a group of 10 female workers and one man digging a pond. Within 6 days they dug 96 cubic meters and each worker got a wage of 122 rupees per day.

In the Philippines, environmentalist -lawyer Antonio Oposa, who had previously succeeded in securing a Writ of Kalikasan from the Supreme Court directing Government to clean up Manila Bay, is on a second crusade. He has filed a Petition for Mandamus to get both the National and Local Government Units to implement RA 7161. The law, enacted during the 8th Congress or about 20 years ago, mandated that Government, thru the DPWH and LGUs, construct water wells, rainwater catchments, collectors and spring development projects in all barangays in the country.
The water wells part had been implemented with over 100,000 wells and spring development projects constructed within 5 years from the passage of the Act. No doubt, it had reduced the high morbidity and mortality rate of rural folks caused by waterborne diseases. But the situation had slid back as population increased and the water wells were not maintained.
It is the second part of the law- the provision on rain water catchment and collector- that has not been implemented at all. Apart from a few demonstration projects, government has not done much for this program.
What compelling reasons has Oposa seen that moved him to unearth this Law and force Government to construct water catchments all over the country? Unlike other countries which may have to fight future wars over water, we are lucky not to share borders with other countries. We are also blessed with monsoon rains during 6 months of the year, but being an archipelago with no continental river systems, the rainwater that falls on the mountain tops only rushes off to the sea within hours, destroying property on its path. We are unable to harvest the water for use in the dry season, as China, Taiwan, and now India, do with catchment ponds dotting their countryside. Israel, which has to share water from the Jordan river as its source of irrigation, also catches and saves water on the slopes from the little precipitation it gets. Sprinkler systems and drip irrigation are used for less water intensive crops, such as vegetables, root crops and cut flowers for export.
Second, water is able to infiltrate and replenish the aquifer, raising the water table. Trees can be planted along the banks, enhancing the environment. And the pond can be seeded with fish fries for added livelihood of the farmers.
Aside from the above benefits, the construction of rain water catchments commends itself to share in the Conditional Cash Transfer fund for the following reasons: they are projects undertaken in the rural areas where 70 per cent of our poor live, (although ponds or lakes can also be dug in low level urban areas for flood control); only the truly poor would agree to work under the hot sun for his family’s supper, so the project is self-selecting; there is gender equality since women can also dig as well as the men; the project is suited to manual labor and can be inspected for progress payment. While the ponds can be done quickly with backhoes or bulldozers, (though not necessarily as cheaply) the objective is to give work to the poor so that he could send his children to school and his pregnant wife to the health clinic. These same conditions may be required of the men or women who will be hired.

And the cost? Assuming we construct 10 water catchments per year in each of our 46,000 barangays at P5000 per catchment, that would only amount to P2.3 billion per year.

I am sure the Congressmen and Senators will not be lacking ideas to suggest to the DSWD, such as cleaning of esteros in the cities, desilting of irrigation canals, repair of farm to market roads, construction of school rooms, school feeding programs, livestock dispersal, etc. when the Session is resumed.

But why not just hand out the money to the poor? Because as we give our poor the opportunity to work or to earn their livelihood, we also give them the dignity that the most benevolent welfare state cannot confer.

Felicito C. Payumo