NDRRMC amends guidelines to allow LGUs easier access to disaster funds

INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines — In a bid to fast track the rehabilitation of infrastructure in disaster-stricken areas, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) on Tuesday amended the guidelines for the disaster funds.

The resolution, adopted during the emergency full council meeting, revokes the guidelines specified in the NDRRMC Memorandum Circular No. 1 series of 2024 that prioritize only the 4th to 6th Income Class LGUs and require 1st to 3rd Income Class for a Local Counterpart Fund.

This new order repeals the counterpart funding requirement for  the LGUs under the 1st to 3rd income class.

The local counterpart fund refers to the portion of the approved requested fund that the LGUs must shoulder depending on their income class.

The NDRRMC said in a statement that the “NDRRM (National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management) Fund may be utilized to repair, reconstruct or rehabilitate local or national infrastructure regardless of income classification when such are vital for access and connectivity and are necessary for response or early recovery as certified by the Regional Directors of the OCD (Office of Civil Defense) and the DPWH (Department of Public Works and Highways) in disaster-affected regions.”

The National DRRM Fund should be utilized for relief, recovery, reconstruction, and other work or services in connection with natural or human-induced calamities which occur during the budget year or those that occurred in the past two years from the budget year, as provided under the Republic Act No. 10121 or the Philippine Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Act of 2010.

This resolution was made in light of Feb 6. landslide in Davao de Oro’s mining village which reportedly claimed the lives of at least 71 people, according to the local government.

READ: 71 bodies found after Davao de Oro landslide

The OCD said multiple weather disturbances like the shear line, northeast monsoon, and the trough of a low-pressure area hit the Davao region this month, which caused widespread flooding and landslide incidents in the region.