EU eyes 100M EURO grant for Marawi Rehabilitation

EU eyes €100-M grant for Marawi rehab

By Catherine Talavera (The Philippine Star)

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EU Ambassador Franz Jessen said the group is eyeing a grant that would focus on the rehabilitation of Marawi City as well as the whole of Mindanao. File

MANILA, Philippines — The European Union (EU) is looking to offer the Philippines a grant of as much as 100 million euros for the rehabilitation of war-torn Marawi City.

EU Ambassador Franz Jessen said the group is eyeing a grant that would focus on the rehabilitation of Marawi City as well as the whole of Mindanao.

“Right now, we are discussing internally in the EU, we’re talking about 55 million euros. Later on we intend to expand around 100 million euros for Mindanao and Marawi,” Jessen said on the sidelines of the 4th Energy Smart Philippines summit yesterday.

Jessen said they have already spent under 1 million euros on assisting Marawi in areas such as water purification.

“Things that are very practical that don’t affect foreign policy but it does affect the daily life of the people there,” he said.

Jessen emphasized the new assistance would focus on job creation in the region.

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“We look at this as partly reconstruction, but also to give the people hope and permanent jobs. So job creation would be a major focus. Energy will also be a major focus,” he said.

The EU ambassador stressed the importance of rehabilitating Marawi for the Philippines to attract more European investors into the country.

“The European investors don’t look at the country divided into different regions, but they look at it as one country. And it is important that there is peace across the country,” Jessen said.

Sought to comment on the issue of Foreign Affairs Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano reportedly rejecting the EU’s grant to the country, Jessen said he met with the official two days ago.

“We had a very good discussion. We had a very intense discussion with Secretary Cayetano and (Finance) Secretary (Carlos) Dominguez and then we went through the different issues and we’re sort of going back to our corners and see how we can modify,” Jessen said.

Cayetano confirmed meeting the EU ambassador.

“If there are no conditionalities and it will not affect our sovereignty, then everyone is free to help,” Cayetano had said.

President Duterte has been ranting at the EU for criticizing his policy against illegal drugs.

In May, Duterte informed the EU that the Philippine government would no longer accept development aid from the body.

Jessen said the decision to cut aid from the EU would mean the loss of about 250 million euros worth of grants, mostly allocated to Muslim communities in Mindanao.

Jessen stressed the EU would continue its development program.

“Our development assistance is for the Philippines and that’s where we need to focus. It’s for companies, it’s for people, it’s health, it’s energy, it’s better education and it’s the reconstruction of Marawi,” Jessen said.

Military operations have cost P5 billion ($97 million) and the government estimates it could cost 10 times that much to rebuild Marawi.

Apart from the EU, Australia, the United States, Singapore, Russia, the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank are among the countries and organizations that have offered to help.

In a related development, San Miguel Corp. (SMC) donated P2 million as seed capital for each family of the soldiers who died in the battle of Marawi.

“This project from San Miguel Corporation which will extend P330 million to 163 soldiers or police killed in action at P2 million as seed capital for a business startup assistance for each of family (of soldiers) killed in Marawi,” SMC president and chief executive officer Ramon Ang said.

Ang and outgoing Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Gen. Eduardo Año sealed the donation in a ceremony held at Camp Aguinaldo yesterday.

“This is the best we can honor them. We cannot replace them or can we repay them for their sacrifice, but we can honor them and help them fulfill their dream of better lives for their families,” Ang said.

Año, for his part, was all praises for the gesture.

“The donation of P2-million seed business capital would really go a long, long way for the bereaved families for them to be able to get going, building their own lives and show that their husbands or their sons who died fighting really did all their best for the country,” Año said.

“Mr. Ang, you’re an angel to our bereaved families. We cannot thank you enough, the whole AFP is really in gratitude… hence the AFP, as I said, will always be the professional armed forces that will be the protector of the people and the state,” he told Ang. – Jaime Laude

From Day One After Yolanda until Today: Solid German Support for Rehabilitation Continues

Since the onset of Yolanda, Germany has been relentless in the outpour of support for those devastated by the typhoon. German humanitarian relief organizations have been among the first who reached the Philippines from abroad to help the victims of Typhoon Yolanda – through a Lufthansa plane scheduled to fly from Germany to Manila for its regular servicing, which was loaded with relief goods after early news of the typhoon’s damage hit the screens.

Until today, German relief organizations have been working non-stop in the typhoon-stricken areas, funded by massive donations of the German civil society and funds from the German Government – released within a heartbeat following news of the typhoon’s devastation.

To quantify this support: more than 176 million Euros, (Php 10.7 billion) for relief and rehabilitation efforts in the regions affected by Typhoon Yolanda came from Germany. Out of these, an outstanding 144 million Euros (Php 8.7 billion) are made up of German private donations to relief organizations actively operating in the Visayas regions. In addition to private donations, the German government contributed a total of 32 million Euros (Php 2 billion) out of which 16 million Euros were given in humanitarian aid for the immediate relief of victims of the typhoon, while 16 million Euros were allocated for reconstruction of areas destroyed by Typhoon Yolanda.

Until today, many German aid organizations are implementing reconstruction programs in the areas hit by the Typhoon. Examples are: Johanniter Unfallhilfe, Malteser International and Plan International.

Johanniter Unfallhilfe is working on the islands of Panay and Leyte. Johanniter’s main activities on Panay focus on the repair of infrastructure such as barangay halls, health and day care centers, class rooms, sea walls, rainwater catchments, foot bridges, community halls, as well as the installation of water filtration systems. This project, which is co-funded by German Bank Foundation (GBS) and Johanniter reaches 7,000 direct and 1,500 indirect beneficiaries.

Rebuilding of homes by Malteser International (© Photo: Fulvio Zanettini/ADH)

 

In the immediate aftermath of the typhoon, Malteser International from Germany distributed food, hygiene kits, water containers and relief items to about 9,000 families. A water treatment unit provided clean drinking water to an entire village. To date, 250 houses have been repaired, 52 large tents were set up as classrooms and play areas, and 800 families received tarpaulins. Malteser International distributed school materials to almost 2,500 school children as well as tools for cleanup and farming tools to the villagers. Over the past year, Malteser International, in partnership with the Philippine Association of the Order of Malta initiated a relief and recovery program with 4 communities on Samar and Bantayan Island affected by Typhoon Yolanda. Its comprehensive program seeks to assist vulnerable families and communities to recover after the disaster, through disaster resistant and inclusive housing reconstruction, school rehabilitation, water systems repairs, targeted home improvements, youth training, and small livelihood activities. 200 shelters have been provided with 500 more to be constructed. Malteser International will also seek to strengthen local knowledge about safe construction. Young adults will receive training in carpentry and masonry as well as disaster relief actions as part of a program in cooperation with a local vocational training agency.

Plan International has received support from the German Federal Foreign Office for activities that aim to strengthen climate resiliency of the local population in the rehabilitation efforts.

Green Skills Training participants showing their output for the day (Day 2) - solar dryer and Liquid fertilizer, mouldings (© Plan International) As part of the program, communities receive trainings in green technology such as the construction and use of solar dryers that can cut the drying time for fish or other food in half, retained heat cookers, organic fertilizers and char making stoves using debris fuel instead of cutting mangroves. These sustainable green technologies utilize indigenous materials and enable a more efficient use of natural resources or debris. Energy costs are reduced and waste management is improved.