Reducing Poverty through Community Empowerment

The water from the hand pumps used by residents of Villa Rosario in Talugtug, Nueva Ecija was rusty in color and tasted like mud, said Anita Tacdol, Board Member of the local water cooperative. "Many of us became ill with diarrhea and vomiting," she recalls.

But that is a thing of the past, she explains, after she and her fellow residents decided to prioritize and build their own water supply system, with financial and technical support from the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD). "Everyone is happy that we now have safe and clean water in each of our homes," she says.

Villa Rosario's story demonstrates how the community-driven development (CDD) approach, implemented through the country's Kalahi-CIDSS (Kapit-Bisig Laban sa Kahirapan-Comprehensive and Integrated Delivery of Social Services) is transforming people's lives for the better.

Empowering Local Communities

Kalahi-CIDSS is a government program that empowers communities by providing resources and support, enabling them to solve their own problems in a participatory manner and build a better future. The main goal is to reduce poverty by empowering communities to take charge of their own development, making local decision-making more inclusive, transparent, and responsive to people's real needs.

Supported by the World Bank, Kalahi-CIDSS gives villages grants and training so local people can decide what projects they need most (like building roads, water systems, schools, or health clinics) and then plan, implement, and manage these projects themselves.

How is participatory planning and decision-making done under Kalahi-CIDSS?

Communities organize themselves, analyze their development needs and priorities, and prepare project proposals to address their common problems. These proposals are developed through facilitated discussions, village assemblies, and consensus-building processes. Local governments and agencies including DSWD provide oversight, technical support, and ensure compliance with policies and standards.

Results and Impact

Since 2015, Kalahi-CIDSS has financed 54,843 subprojects, benefiting 17.5 million households nationwide. These subprojects, which include basic access facilities (e.g., village roads), social services, environmental protection, and community utilities, have improved the lives of about 1.5 million Indigenous households. The project has mobilized over 2.45 million community volunteers, 63% of whom are women.

It has significantly improved access to essential infrastructure and services, achieving an average 68% increase across all subproject types. Marginalized groups, including members of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps), female-headed households, and Indigenous peoples, achieved an average participation rate of 67%, far exceeding the 40% target.

The story of Barangay Baculungan Norte in Buguias, Benguet tells us just how these subprojects are quickly felt on the ground. In the past, farmers in this village manually haul their produce to the market, resulting in high spoilage rates and losses.

Through their collective efforts, including the active participation of women, residents rehabilitated the local road network using participatory planning and implementation, thus improving their access to both health services and markets, leading to increased incomes and community well-being.

In the village of Sua in Camaligan, Bicol Region, Kalahi-CIDSS helped residents improve their community's resilience against extreme weather events. It used to be that whenever there was news of a typhoon, residents of said seaside village always felt anxious because they had no place to take shelter. Their solution? They collectively decided to build their own evacuation center so they could be safe during typhoons and floods.

"Before the evacuation center was built, we would set up makeshift shelters and stay along an [elevated] irrigation road for weeks because the floodwaters in our area were very deep, and we had nowhere to keep our belongings," says Salvacion Alayan, a community volunteer.

The Kalahi-CIDSS platform proved adaptable for disaster recovery, notably after Typhoon Haiyan, where community-built infrastructure supported rapid response and recovery. During the COVID-19 pandemic, NCDDP mobilized community resources for health facilities and cash-for-work programs.

Beyond the statistics, Kalahi-CIDSS has produced important outcomes, including:

• Empowerment of Women and Marginalized Groups: Women played leading roles as volunteers and decision-makers. Indigenous Peoples (IPs) and other vulnerable groups were actively included, with high participation rates in project activities.
• Lasting Change in Local Governance: Kalahi-CIDSS has institutionalized participatory planning and budgeting in many local governments, making community engagement a standard practice.
• Social Cohesion and Trust: It improves trust between community members and local officials, facilitating further collective action and economic development. It promotes social inclusion, especially in conflict-affected and indigenous communities.

Going Forward: Strengthening Community Resilience

The KALAHI-CIDSS National Community Driven Development Project ended in December 2024. In July this year, however, the World Bank approved funding for a new CDD project called the Philippines Community Resilience Project.

Also called "Pagkilos" (Filipino term for 'action'), this project will engage communities in identifying climate and natural hazard risks and developing resilience plans. Initiatives prioritized within these plans will then receive implementation grants, with a particular focus on resilient community infrastructure and sustainable livelihoods.

Resilience investments for funding under Pagkilos may include flood and drought mitigation, landslide and slope protection, surge protection and breakwaters, windbreakers, and retrofitting of existing infrastructure to withstand extreme weather events.

In addition, the project will support erosion control, agroforestry, and other nature-based solutions for ecosystem conservation, including community forests, wetlands, marshes, and waterways, erosion control, water conservation, and agroforestry.

Zafer Mustafaoğlu, Division Director for the Philippines, Malaysia, and Brunei says that by empowering local communities to take the lead in building resilience against climate and disaster risks, the Philippines is not only addressing immediate environmental challenges but also fostering a culture of proactive engagement and resilience.

He adds: "Communities play a critical role in preparing for and responding to disasters. Their ability to anticipate risks, organize themselves, and collaborate with local and national authorities is essential for effective climate and disaster risk preparedness and recovery efforts."