The impacts of climate change and biodiversity loss are further complicating the already arduous path for sustainable urban development in the Philippines. Home to 59 million urban dwellers, the country’s built environment is facing critical challenges from sudden and slow onset climate impacts.
This is what UN-Habitat seeks to address as it leads the urban ecosystem-based adaptation (EbA) component of the Transformative Actions for Climate and Ecological Protection and Development (TRANSCEND), a newly launched bilateral project between the Philippine government and the Federal Government of Germany, funded through the International Climate Initiative (IKI).
Held on March 27 in Makati City, representatives from the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK) led by Parliamentary State Secretary Stefan Wenzel, Ambassador Dr. Andreas Pfaffernoschke of the German Embassy in Manila, GIZ Country Director Immanuel Gebhardt, and key officials of Philippine government agencies, launched a Php 2.23B project to contribute to the climate and biodiversity initiatives of the country.
UN-Habitat Philippines Country Programme Manager Christopher Rollo and UN-Habitat Asia Pacific Coordinator for Climate Change and Urban Environment Laids Cea also joined the event attended by officials from government partners including the Climate Change Commission, Department of Environment and Natural Resources, the Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development, the Department of Trade and Industry, the Department of Transportation, the Department of Finance, and the National Economic and Development Authority.
TRANSCEND supports the ongoing efforts of the Philippines in addressing climate change and biodiversity loss, thereby contributing to the country’s National Adaptation Plan, Nationally Determined Contributions, and the Philippine Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan. The project will focus on biodiversity conservation, urban EbA, energy efficiency in micro-, small-, and medium-sized enterprises, low-carbon public transportation, and climate governance, with various components to be implemented across three major landscapes and more than 100 local government units.
Prior to the launch, UN-Habitat Philippines conducted implementation planning workshops with the provincial governments of Iloilo, Antique, Misamis Oriental, Bukidnon, Oriental Mindoro, and the City of Calapan. These provided significant inputs to the implementation of the urban EbA component and the TRANSCEND project, as a whole.
Set to run until 2029 , the project will be implemented by a consortium led by The Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH and composed of Conservation International Philippines, Rare Philippines, UN-Habitat, UNIDO, Clean Air Asia, International Council on Clean Transportation, Wuppertal Institute, Climate Analytics, Institute of Climate and Sustainable Cities, and the University of the Philippines Center for Women’s and Gender Studies.
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