The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) continues its nationwide stakeholder consultations by convening more than 200 industry and sector leaders in the Visayas to generate recommendations as it refines its Environment and Natural Resources (ENR) Framework in a two-day forum in Iloilo City on January 18-19, 2023.
The Visayas leg of the forum, held at the Iloilo Grand Xing Imperial Hotel, is a continuation of the Luzon Multistakeholder Forum held on October 5-7, 2022, attended by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and over 300 stakeholders from government, private sector, civil society, academic and scientific institutions, and the Philippines’ international development partners. The DENR Multistakeholder Forum aims to produce evidence-informed actions for the protection, conservation, enhancement, and regeneration of the Philippines’ ecosystems.
Over the course of two days, experts and decision makers from all sectors will come together to share knowledge, expertise, and innovations unique to the Visayas region to inform the DENR’s development and implementation of evidence-based and risk and context-informed programs and policies for resilience.
DENR Secretary Maria Antonia Yulo Loyzaga assured everyone present of the Department’s continued commitment to address environmental challenges through partnership, consultation, and collaboration.
“Our close collaboration and partnership can yield the most significant results. This synergy will generate new capacities for everyone to protect, restore, and enhance our rich but threatened ecosystems,” Secretary Loyzaga said.
Atty. Jonas R. Leones, DENR Undersecretary for Policy, Planning, and International Affairs, presented the agency’s developing ENR Framework for Multistakeholder Engagement, highlighting
- The national government’s commitment to providing livelihood opportunities to communities while improving the capacity of ecosystems to withstand the climate crisis;
- How businesses can act as collaborators in decarbonized and regenerative activities rather than contributors to greenhouse gas emissions;
- the importance of considering, including and giving a platform to communities that are vulnerable to the impacts of the climate crisis; and
- How the DENR should act as a central hub for data to efficiently quantify the risks of the climate crisis and the value of recommended actions.
The Framework will serve as the foundation for science-based, data-driven, and socially, politically, and culturally-sensitive decision making. To achieve this, Secretary Loyzaga emphasized that the DENR will continue to dynamically integrate scientific, technological, and traditional knowledge, expertise, and innovation into the agency’s strategies, policies, and processes.
“With everyone’s support and collaboration, together we will be able to craft adaptive, inclusive, and sustainable development pathways built on strategic partnerships and sound science,” Secretary Loyzaga said.
The DENR Region 6 will also inaugurate its new Monitoring Building in Iloilo City on January 19. Completed in December 2022, the new structure is expected to help enhance the DENR Region 6’s services by centralizing its storage and procurement bay. PENRO Iloilo’s Forest Products and Wildlife Traffic Monitoring Section; the Planning and Management, Finance and Administrative divisions will also be housed in the Monitoring Building.