CHAPTER 1 (draft)

SELF- SUSTAINED COMMUNITY PROVISION FOR INFORMAL SETTLERS

INTRODUCTION

Metro Manila and Economy

Metro Manila is the total urban area that is composed of different cities and the surrounding urban fringe. The proper city Manila is only one of the big cities of this urban agglomeration. Metro Manila, or the 'National Capital Region' as they say in the Philippines, is a real metropolitan area. On 636 square kilometer live more than 10 million inhabitants. [1]

Many in-migrants are unable to find adequate work or shelter; they become part of Manila’s ever growing population of “Urban Poor”. If they are lucky, in-migrants may obtain low- paying jobs in construction, transportation, or other services. Many others though become homeless living and scavenging.

Urbanization and Population Growth in Metro Manila

As the nation’s capital becomes more and more highly urbanized, it also experiences urbanization’s adverse effects. The metropolis is surrounded of human misery and degeneration, endless miles of slums, and more slums ----- there are 526 slum communities located in all its cities and municipalities.[2] The country has focused to develop in only one area, which is Manila, resulting informal sectors to settle into private and government owned properties. Underground communities will therefore spread in urban areas since they are drawn by job opportunities and technology advances; rapid population growth will be expected. Slum communities are detrimental for the growth and development of Manila and Philippines as a whole. Private and government owned properties are inactive and are becoming a barrier for promoting better lives for the Filipino people.

HOUSING PROVISION FOR INFORMAL SETTLERS

 This trend of population concentration in urban areas creates complexity in meeting the basic daily needs and coping with the fast pace of life that results to social, cultural, political and economic problems, which eventually leads to urban poverty.[3]

Pasig River is one of many sites in Metro Manila where in- migrants settle. They are considered as informal settlers--- having no formal ownership of the land they live in. Because of its over population, Pasig River has been polluted and is considered as a “dead river” in the 90’s.

Background of the Study

Urban Poverty and Major Issues

The poor in cities suffer from various deprivations such as lack of access to employment; adequate housing and infrastructure; social protection and lack of access to health, education and personal security.[4]

There is a potential growth in issues like poor public transport, uncoordinated infrastructure provision, bad housing, low levels of public health and improper waste management. People live at very high densities because the amount of space required for daily living and movement between different activities are becoming more and more complex. Rapid urban growth became apparent that the various reform movements--- with interests in land rights, housing and  economic justice--- shared common concerns, and needed to coordinate if they were to bring about lasting change. [5]

Housing Problems

Urban housing is a fundamental component of every city.  The city's housing  condition reflects not just the income levels and level of well-being of its inhabitants, but to a certain extent, clearly show the social and spatial inequalities that exist  within the city. As a growing megacity confronted by numerous large scale urban problems, Metro Manila's housing situation remains to be a priority metropolitan concern for several decades now.[6]

The housing landscape of Metro Manila shows extreme polarization.  Numerous upscale housing development projects are sporadically emerging across the metropolis alongside the continuous burgeoning of shanty towns and slum dwellings all over the city. Continuous massive influx of migrants from different provinces to Metro Manila further intensified the demand for settlement space.[7]

Informal Settlers and Poverty

Poverty in the Philippines is most acute and widespread in rural areas. Although Manila certainly has its share of urban poor, the National Capital Region has the lowest poverty incidence in the country. The rural poor tend to be self-employed, primarily in agriculture or casual labor. They are almost all landless.[8]

Planning and Poverty Reduction

 

It can be seen that the concept of development has an economic dimension, but that it goes beyond measuring GDP. It is now widely recognized that development involves distributional issues and that the continued existence of mass poverty is incompatible with this development concept irrespective of the overall level of income.

Poverty reduction is therefore crucially linked to development and it cannot claim genuine progress in development if it has not made significant inroads into levels of both absolute and relative poverty.

The government has adopted strategy of improving the livability of poor communities and provision of access to basic urban infrastructure and services to build sustainable urban communities. In this regard, the government has started to improve land administration and management.[9]

Community Development

The government scaled up community based housing programs to provide landless urban poor access and secure tenure on urban lands. One of these programs is the Community Mortgage Program (CMP) that provided low cost financing to organized household communities for land acquisition and development. The sustainability is doubtful due to the informal settlers’ poor loan repayment performance. Several shortcomings have been noted. First, the program does not always provide a realistic option for addressing tenure concerns because either some land owners have no intention of dealing with the community or some communities lack the requisite negotiating skills. Second, while the CMP is designed mainly to help squatters on private lands but it does not offer much help to low-income renters who also might want to have secure tenure through ownership. Third, the main benefit from CMP is access to land but it does not meet problems of slum upgrading and provision of basic services or infrastructure.[10]

Government Strategies and Organizations

The Philippine government reaffirms its support to the Habitat Agenda on the provision of adequate shelter for all and the promotion of sustainable development. Enshrined in Article XIII of the 1987 Philippine Constitution is the right to adequate shelter of the Filipino people. In translating this mandate into concrete initiatives and measures, the Philippine government forged linkages with the civil society, the private sector and the academe. This is in order to transform the underlying government philosophy of building on the initiatives and capabilities of the people as well as making them partners instead of mere recipients of development.

Beyond paying lip service to the Habitat agenda, the Philippine government, since 1996, has installed policies and legislations aimed at implementing the Habitat agenda.

 

The passage of these important legislations may be credited to the synergism in the tripartite cooperation among government organizations, non-government organizations (NGOs) and people's organizations (POs).

To complement the efforts of the legislature, the executive branch issued Executive Orders on the curtailment of professional squatters and squatting syndicates, formulation of comprehensive land use plans by LGUs, reformulation of the National

Urban Development and Housing Framework for 1999 - 2004 and streamlining of the process for issuance of permits on housing and subdivision development projects.

Moreover, the Philippine government also devised many programs to provide security of tenure and regularize informal settlers occupying public lands.

Taking note of the housing requirements of the formal sector as well, the Philippine Government also established a home lending program with fund contributions coming from the social security institutions as well as other government financial institutions.[11]

Statement of the Problem

The revival of Pasig River is is led by the Pasig River Rehabilitation Commission (PRCC). One of its programs is to provide housing facilities to the informal setters alongside Pasig River. There are  about --- informal settlers along the banks of the river and they are detrimental in improving the condition of the area. This program would help the organization make best use of its agenda in improving the natural environment.

The informal settlers are considered to earn very low at a day to day basis and the government sponsors or needs to subsidize the funding of the shelter provision in order to develop their lives and to improve or revive Pasig River as well.

 

The project calls for a housing facility for the informal settlers that would provide them shelter and at the same time improve their lives in their own community. A housing facility also includes infrastructures (roads, housing units, drainage systems,

etc.) utilities (water and power) and common facilities (open spaces, schools, health centers, market) accessible to their needs.

The project also needs to recognize the informal settlers families (ISF) involved to the relocation project. The relocation site needs to be determined and studied for the health and safety of the future settlers.

Problem Objectives

Relocation site for the informal settlers along the banks of Pasig River are needed as the PRCC would pursue their programs in reviving the Pasig River. The project calls for a housing facility for the informal settlers that would provide them shelter and at the same time improve their lives in their own community and addresses the following concerns:

1.      To provide a site that is safe for the future settlers

2.      To have an accessible roads, housing units and drainage system to the site

3.      To provide the future setters utilities such as water a power

4.      To have an accessible (or provide) common facilities such as school, market, health center and open spaces(park)

Project Scope and Delimitation

 

This research is to develop strategies or approach in providing the informal settlers along the banks of Pasig River(one area) housing facilities. This research is also to determine which area in alongside the river are to be involved in the relocation.

 

Definition of terms

1.      Informal Settlers

2.      Poverty (noun)- state of being poor

3.      Urbanized (transitive verb)- to make an area of countryside or a village into a town or part of one

4.      Housing (noun)- provision of accommodation; the provision of space to live

5.      NHA- National Housing Authority

6.      Population (noun)- all of the people who inhabit an area, region or country

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[1] Pa- Riles: the UST-CCMF Tondo youth community development program participatory action research experience

[2]

[3] Investing in People

[4] Changes and Challenges Pasig City : Development Academy of the Philippines

[5] Development Planning and Poverty Reduction by Dr. David Potts; Dr. Patrick Ryan; Anna Toner

[6]An Introduction to Community Development by Rhonda Philips; Robert H. Pittman

[7] The Philippines: Mobilities, Identities, Globalization by James A. Tyner

[8] Development Planning and Poverty Reduction by Dr. David Potts; Dr. Patrick Ryan; Anna Toner

[9] Development Planning and Poverty Reduction by Dr. David Potts; Dr. Patrick Ryan; Anna Toner

[10] An Introduction to Community Development by Rhonda Philips; Robert H. Pittman

[11] Urban and Development Housing Authority