Emergency Response & Recovery
The Philippines faces 18-20 typhoons annually, causing significant economic damage. Over the past decade, typhoons have resulted in €7.45 billion in damages and claimed 12,000 lives. In response to this ongoing challenge, PIN Philippines focuses on empowering and preparing typhoon-prone areas, specifically heavily flooded areas in Mindanao, through establishing an early warning system, capacity building on disaster preparedness and response to be more resilient, and better equipped with mechanisms to mitigate the impacts of disasters.
Previously, we also focused on the Battle of Marawi in 2017, which caused hundreds of thousands of people to flee their homes, resulting in the longest urban war in modern Philippine history. We partnered with local organizations to assist young people affected by the conflict, distributing school uniforms, and providing legal advice and psychosocial support. Additionally, we offered sub-grants to local civil society groups and launched programs to empower youth to advocate for increased tolerance and respect for other religions and cultures. We have also taken steps to address the COVID-19 pandemic by engaging in information, education, and communication campaigns that combat misinformation and prioritize public health and well-being.
Ongoing ActivitiesORPast Activities
Strengthening Resiliency Through Early Action and Impact Mitigation
The project is a user-friendly life-saving system that provides accurate and timely flood information to relevant authorities and allows them to disseminate reliable warning messages easily and quickly to at-risk communities regarding climatic or societal hazards. The EWS tool is a simple technology following four necessary components for an effective EWS: (1) disaster knowledge; (2) hazard monitoring; (3) warning dissemination; (4) preparedness and response.
It will focus on the flood-prone areas of the Caraga Region, namely, Guigaquit, Claver, and Bacuag in Surigao del Norte, and Tago and San Miguel in Surigao del Sur. The project will partner with various stakeholders, primarily the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council, Department of Science and Technology (DOST), and Target Barangays/Communities, Smart Communications Inc.
Strengthening partnerships for localized humanitarian leadership and emergency response efforts in the Philippines (SPHERE-PH)
PIN Philippines redirects the partnership agenda to prepare local frontline responders to be more effective and become the veritable voices of communities, strengthening their capacities and partnerships for future humanitarian interventions and financing. CP will focus on strategic partnerships with local CSOs across the most at-risk and vulnerable areas in Mindanao.
The project partners with four local NGOs, namely, Balay Mindanao Foundation Inc., Maranao People Development Center Inc., Integrated Rural Development Foundation of the Philippines, and Pambansang Koalisyon ng Kababaihan sa Kanayunan.
Through these strategic initiatives, PIN Philippines aims to strengthen the resilience and effectiveness of local organizations in Mindanao.
Supporting students after the crisis in Marawi
Rebels who declared their support to the so-called Islamic State took control of the city towards the end of May 2017. The conflict escalated when the Philippine government embarked on an operation to catch one of the Islamist leaders. The biggest urban war in modern history of the Philippines lasted 6 months and cause damage of an estimated 20 billion Philippine Pesos (CZK 8,7 billion).
Since October 2017, People in Need has been helping displaced children get back in school so they can get back to the lives they had been living before the crisis. PIN supported students by providing them with school uniforms, which are mandatory in local schools. Together with local partner organisations we provided psychological support and helped to recover lost personal documents such as birth certificates, ID cards and school reports that are needed to enrol in school.