freedom to grow: impact stories from the philippines

8/9/2019 Freedom to Grow: Impact Stories from the Philippines

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Freedomto Grow

Impact Stories from the Philippines

PHI Impact Stories-16 Sept 2010.indd 1 10/28/10


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Contents1 Introduction2 Homes for the Working Class By Rita R. FestinEnticed by the historic provinces modern industrial status, Cavites blue-collar workers are

nding afordable, attractive housing in an ADB-unded project.

6 The Power of the River By Rita R. FestinVillagers in remote districts o Negros Occidental are ending their isolation rom economicopportunities with the aid o hydropower.

10 A Bright Idea for Energy Reduction By Rita R. FestinThe Philippines is replacing energy-wasting light bulbs with more ecient uorescent bulbs,promising to save millions o pesosand bulbsand to reduce debilitating power ailures.

12How to Milk Carabaos By Rita R. Festin

Promising but cash-poor agricultural ventures across the Philippines are taking advantage oan ADB project that provides unds or equipment, transport networks, and other acilities,

helping poor armers scale up their incomes.

14 Roads to Bank On By Rita R. FestinFarm-to-market roads stimulate development in rural Eastern Samar and boost armersincomes along the way.

18 A Drive for Progress and Peace By Ramoncito dela CruzA bridge and a arm-to-market road in Davao del Sur bring renewed prosperity and security totroubled Mindanao.

22 Life in the Fast Lane By Floyd WhaleyADBs support or the renovation o a highway north o the Philippines capital, Manila, hastransormed the areas economic landscape.

26 Chasing Buses, Chasing Prots By Ramoncito dela CruzA new bus terminal improves the livelihoods o the women who board buses to sell snacks,drinks, or souvenirs to passengers.

30 Fount of Life and Livelihood By Ramoncito dela CruzIn Mindanao, clean water keeps children healthier, improves business, and allows women toengage in more income-generating activities.

The views expressed in this publication are those o the authors and do not necessarily reect the views and policies o the Asian

Development Bank (ADB) or its Board o Governors or the governments they represent. Accounts presented here are anecdotaland do not represent comprehensive impacts o programs or projects. ADB does not guarantee the accuracy o the data includedin this publication and accepts no responsibility or any consequence o their use.

By making any designation o or reerence to a particular territory or geographic area, or by using the term country in thispublication, ADB does not intend to make any judgments as to the legal or other status o any territory or area.

ADB encourages printing or copying inormation exclusively or personal and noncommercial use with proper acknowledgmento ADB. Users are restricted rom reselling, redistributing, or creating derivative works or commercial purposes without the

express, written consent o ADB.

Note: In this publication, $ reers to US dollars.



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The Philippines holds the unique position

o host to the Asian Development Bank

(ADB) headquarters in Manila. ADB

plans to raise its impact on the tropical

archipelago to a new level, orging broader links to

society, including nongovernment organizations,

womens groups, and ethnic minorities.

ADB nds merit in supporting micronance

or income-generating activities or the poor;

education and health acilities; potable water

supplies; road transport in rural areas; and the

development o lagging regions, particularly in

the southern Philippines. These programs, some

o which are proled here, have changed the

lives o the poor or the better in a country where

almost 40% o the population subsists on $2 orless per day.

The development strategies o ADB and the

government have proven exible and pragmatic

in helping stave of the worst efects o the

global economic nancial crisis that began in

2008. As it has done beore, ADB will provide

loans to the Philippines that are sustained,

selective, and or reasonable amounts; and

it will push ahead with non-loan projects,

including knowledge products and support

or policy reorm, capacity building, and

institutional strengthening.

The Philippines is a ounding member o ADB,

and its 11th-largest shareholder and th-largest

borrower. It is one o ADBs biggest clients or

private sector lending and equity investments.

INTRODUCTION

The power sector has been a major area o ADB

support and success. Its technical and nancial

perormance is critically important to the health o

the economypowering homes, business, schools,

and transport. A revolutionary national efort is

under way to switch rom conventional light bulbs

to compact uorescent bulbs, which consume

less energy. At the same time, micro hydropower

projects are now powering rural villages.

Private sector investments have also borne

ruit. A major highway north o Manila was built

through a landmark nance plan that engaged

the private sector in inrastructure building in

a new way. The government and ADB, the lead

nancing agency, worked together to assemble

a $378 million loan package, provided primarilyby the private sector. ADB contributed a loan o

$45 million and coordinated a loan o $25 million

rom a group o international commercial banks.

Despite this progress, the southern Philippines,

especially Mindanao, lags behind the rest o the

country, according to most development indicators.

To reduce the geographic inequality, ADB has

contributed substantively to a needs assessment or

conict-afected communities in Mindanao.

And though uncertain peace in the southern

region has complicated their implementation,programs ocusing on water and sanitation,

arm-to-market roads, and livelihoods are

helping integrate the rural poor into the

economy, positioning them or inclusion in uture

economic growth.

Introduction

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Pamayanang Maliksi CaviteHousing Project ofers low-incomehousing or Cavites workers.

2

By Rita R. Festin

Homesfor theWorking Class

RitaFestin

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Once the cradle o the Philippine

revolution, the province o Cavite has

become part o a diferent type o

mass movement, as droves o blue-

collar workers head there in search o jobs and

afordable housing.

The newcomers are attracted by job openings

in the many actories making shoes, garments,

auto parts, and computer chips, which have

chosen to set up shop in Cavite because it is closeto Metro Manila. The provincial government is

spearheading eforts to provide a better living

environment or these workers through its

support or the ambitious Pamayanang Maliksi

Cavite Mass Housing Project. Cavites rst such

housing project, it broke ground in March 2008 on

53 hectares in General Trias. When complete, it will

ofer 4,834 low-cost housing units.

Riza Ferrer, 30, works in Imus City, Cavite, at a

garment actory that exports childrens clothes

to the United States. She moved into her new

house in August 2008 with her husband, their5-year-old daughter, and her brother-in-law.

She pays a monthly amortization rate o just

2,365 pesos (P) ($51), payable over 20 yearsonly

slightly higher than the rent in her old boarding

house. As the rst worker rom her actory to buy

a house, she aroused the curiosity o coworkers

who were also interested in owning a home.

Analyn Rillera, 28, works in a Japanese-owned

spare auto-parts actory in Dasmarias town and

has just moved into a new housing unit with her

husband and mother. She hopes to start a new

amily in their new home.

Better than RentingThe typical duplex unit in the project costs

P 400,000 ($8,600), payable at P 2,150 ($46) monthly

over 25 years, with no down payment and no

collateral. Each house has a oor area o 22.6 square

meters (m2) and a lot area o 48 m2. Larger-single

attached units with a oor area o 30 m2 and

a lot area o 60 m2 cost P 400,000 ($8,700), or

P 2,800 a month.

This was conceptualized by our governor, Erineo

Maliksi, to answer the housing needs o our

people o Cavite, which is growing rapidly, or the

less ortunate, and low-income residents o the

province. It is one o his agship projects, said

provincial administrator Aristides Velazco.

GENERAL TRIAS, CAVITE, PHILIPPINES

Enticed by the historic provinces modern industrial status,

Cavites blue-collar workers are nding afordable, attractive

housing in an ADB-unded project.

A young amily makes a home inCavites new housing project.

I liked this right away because itis beautiully built. There is reshair and it is not crowded at all.

Riza Ferrer, homeowner

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The provincial government is spearheading

the project in partnership with developer

R-II Builders, with P 400 million ($8.6 million)

in unding rom ADBs Development oPoor Urban Communities Sector Project.

The Housing and Urban Development

Coordinating Council and the Development

Bank o the Philippines are coexecutors.

Buyers are attracted by the spacious roads

similar to those ound in more auent

neighborhoods; amenities such as a

clubhouse and playground or each o the

ve clusters o houses; and ready drainage,

water, and power connections. A public

school is also being built on the site.

At least 1 in 10 o the current crop o home

buyers is a provincial government employee,

since the site is just 10 kilometers away rom

the capital. Factory workers make up hal

o buyers; employees outside the export

processing zones comprise a third; and the

rest are teachers, military personnel, the

sel-employed, and overseas Filipino workers

who buy the homes or their amilies. Most

Buyers are attracted bythe spacious roads similar

to those ound in moreauent neighborhoods;amenities such as aclubhouse and playgroundor each o the fve clusterso houses; and readydrainage, water, and powerconnections. A public

school is also being built onthe site.

The new homes are spacious,well built, and afordable.

RitaFestin

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Playgrounds are a keyattraction or many amilies.

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homeowners make P 6,000 to P 15,000

($129 to $322) monthly, and all are regularly

employed and members o the Home

Development Mutual Fund. Also known asPag-Ibig, the und gives people across the

country access to housing loans at

6% interest per year.

Progress for the PoorFerrer and Rillera enthuse about the

simple application requirements and quick

processing o their papers by the Provincial

Housing Development and Management

Oce. Ferrers application took only

2 months, while Rilleras took 3 months. They

also appreciate the quality and convenience

o their new homes. I liked this right away

because it is beautiully built. There is resh

air and it is not crowded at all, said Ferrer.

In our ormer home, it was humid and the

houses were cramped. We had to pump our

own water.

ADBs $30 million concessional loan to the

project is coursed through the Development

Bank o the Philippines. The project also

provides microcredit to improve the

income and quality o lie o the urban

poor outside Metro Manila. There are other

similar project sites in Angeles City, ButuanCity, and Tarlac province.

In Cavite, provincial employees wear

T-shirts with the slogan Be part o the

revolutiona reerence to the provinces

many heroes and historical landmarks. With

ADB support, decent afordable housing

may be just that, since it improves the lives

o the working poor. n

Project Information

Development o Poor Urban Communities SectorProject (20032010)

Financing: $30.5 million, ordinary capital resources

(ADB)

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TOBOSO, NEGROS OCCIDENTAL, PHILIPPINES

W

hen residents in the hard-to-

reach districts o this municipality

heard they would soon get

electricity rom a $1.5 million

micro hydropower project, many reused tobelieve it. Its a smokescreen or a treasure-

hunting expedition on the Dalinson River, or

There are strings attached, they scofed.

Giovanni Templado, chair o barangay

(district) Bug-angthe most isolated in the

municipalityled the skeptics. At rst, I did

not believe in it because there have been so

many ailed initiatives, he said.

But ater a couple o years and many

meetings, Winrock International, the

implementing agency behind the proposed

project Renewable Energy and Livelihood or

the Poor in Negros Occidentalconverted the

doubters. Now, I can see that it was or real.

And I am so grateul, Templado acknowledged.

Isidro Zayco, governor o Negros Occidental,

was encouraged by the hydroelectric potential

o the provinces seven large rivers and

abundant, year-round rains. So he pushed

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Villagers in remote districts o Negros Occidental are

ending their isolation rom economic opportunities

with the aid o hydropower.

The Power

of the RiverBy Rita R. Festinor the hydroelectric plants to help end the

provinces rotating power outages.

When the 26-kilowatt (kW) power plant

on the Dalinson was nally opened orbusiness in mid-2008, villagers celebrated

with typical Filipino zeal: They easted on

roast pork seasoned with lemongrass, set

of midday reworks, and enjoyed heartelt

singing and dancing.

Three micro hydropower plants with an

aggregate output o 88 kW were built to

provide energy to 308 homes and to rice

and corn mills. The plants were part o

an innovative poverty reduction efort

to pilot renewable energy and livelihood

development in poor, of-grid rural

communities in Negros Occidental.

Dubbed Renew Negros, the project

completed 11 systems: the 3 micro

hydropower plants and 2 solarbiomass

hybrid systems under the environmentally

riendly renewable-energy plans, and

6 hydraulic ram pump systems or water

supply, beneting a total o 1,972 households.

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Residents o Toboso were trained to orm and

manage a cooperativethe Vergara Magtuod

Development Cooperativeto run the project.

Tough TravelingThe isolation o such communities, oten caused

or worsened by poor roads, can make it hard to

attract economic opportunities. Roads built on

Tobosos rocky terrain and clay-like soil deteriorate

with the regular aternoon downpours, and can

pierce tires or sink vehicles up to the axles.

Even on oot, armers in Vergara take a hal day

to carry produce 6 kilometers down to the town,

using the patch o grass running down the

middle o the road to negotiate the mud and

puddles. More oten than not they simply leave

produce at home to rot.

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At frst, I did not believe in it because there have been so many ailedinitiatives. Now, I can see that it was or real. And I am so grateul.

Giovanni Templado, chair of Bug-ang district

The local electric utility, Central Negros Electric

Cooperative, could not connect the hard-to-reach

parts o the district to the grid because o the high

cost and lack o economic activity.

This changed though, when ADB, through its

Japan Fund or Poverty Reduction, proposed the

micro hydropower plants. While the electricity will

not totally solve the communitys isolation due to

the existing bad roads, the presence o electricity

will boost agricultural production and economic

activities that will eventually get the attention o

local leaders and business interests, resulting in

more development interventions in the area, said

Winrocks Jim Orprecio.

Besides the Toboso plant, a 32 kW micro

hydropower plant was commissioned in barangay

The Dalinsan River hosts a 26 kW power plant thatopened in mid-2008, bringing clean, renewableenergy to rural people.



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RitaFestin

The new micro hydropowerplants, which operate underenvironmentally riendlyrenewable-energy plans,required community efort.

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Laga-an, municipality o Calatrava, and a 30 kW

plant in barangay Baclao, Cauayan.

Among Renew Negros other schemes, two

sh-drying systems were built on the islands o

Molocaboc and Sipaway to provide the additional

capacity needed or drying 100 kilograms o marine

products per day, creating a ready market or the

sh catch in the two communities. These systems

run on a mixture o solar energy and biouels.

The hydraulic ram pumps, meanwhile, have given

360 amilies in six districts a daily water supply o

almost 500,000 liters or households, schools, and

arm irrigation.

Lasting LivelihoodsThe programs important provisions or livelihood

efortsnanced under the microcredit Renew

Fund and managed by the Negros Women or

Tomorrow Foundationhave provided residentswith low-interest loans o up to P 5,000 ($109) or

electricity connections, ertilizers, carabaos (water

bufaloes), and other benets.

Beore hydropower, Toboso relied on kerosene,

batteries, candles, and traditional biomass uel.

Now, students study into the night under bright

lights, households breathe more easily without

toxic kerosene umes, and economic opportunities

are expanding. The grain-milling operation is

boosting rice and corn production, reducing the

cost o processing, and ensuring a better market

and price or produce.

Power costs are also down. At just P 5.50 ($0.12) per

kW, the new power is cheaper than kerosene, which

is P 44 ($0.95) per liter, yielding savings o almost

P 200 ($4.30) per month or the average household.

Greater disposable income and the availability o

low-interest loans have encouraged people to raise

livestock in their backyards.

I it were not or your help, we would not have

been able to improve our lives, said Rico Rivera,

president o the Vergara Magtuod Development

Cooperative. I we had relied on the government,

it would have taken longer, maybe 50 years.n

Project Information

Renewable Energy and Livelihood or the Poor in

Negros Occidental (20032007)

Financing: $1.5 million, Japan Fund or Poverty

Reduction (ADB)

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1010

A Bright Ideafor Energy Reduction

The Philippines is replacing energy-wasting light bulbs

with more ecient uorescent bulbs, promising to save

millions o pesosand bulbsand to reduce debilitating

power ailures.

By Rita R. Festin

CEBU CITY, CEBU, PHILIPPINES

Prodded by persistent power shortages, the

Philippine government has turned to the

humble light bulb to help end debilitating

power ailures in major urban centers,

among them Cebu Citythe astest-growing in

the country and second only to Metro Manila as

an important industrial and cultural hub.

Under the $46.5 million Philippine Energy

Eciency Project (PEEP), the government

is ofering 13 million energy-ecient

compact uorescent lamps (CFLs) to replace

traditional incandescent bulbs in Cebu City

and throughout the country, setting aside

$18 million or bulb replacement.

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Compact uorescent lampswill save power and pesosin the Philippines.



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aging and inecient power plants. "When there

is a shortall due to a breakdown or maintenance

o power plants, we have outages, which are

happening right now," said Ethel Natera, Visayan

Electric Company (VECO) spokesperson, I we

don't interrupt our customers' power supply, there

will be a problem in the whole system, resulting

in a breakdown.

I any plant goes down, then there will be

outages because there is no more reserve supply,"

said Jaime Jose Aboitiz, VECO executive vice

president. According to government data, peakpower demand is 1,175 MW, while the total power

supply is only 1,140 MW.

Energy ocials are hopeul that with the PEEP, and

new power plants in place by 2010, the critical

power situation will be tempered. Besides VECO,

other electric cooperatives are also being tapped

to distribute about 2 million CFLs in the Visayas.

VECO residential customers can visit any o its

branches with their latest bill, identication, and

two unctioning incandescent bulbs and receive

six 15 watt CFLs in exchange.

ADB is the lead nancing agency in the

Philippine power sector, with a third o its total

o over $10 billion in domestic lending going to

generation, transmission, distribution, and sector

development support. ADB also participates in

the government's power sector restructuring

and power plant privatization program to

encourage competition, which would help lower

electricity costs. The ocus o ADB's uture power

sector operations will be on promoting ecient

and renewable energy, and on improving rural

distribution systems.n

With this project in place, the chances o brownouts are nowgetting slimmer.

Roy Kyamko, energy undersecretary

"I 1 million incandescent bulbs are replaced with

CFLs at the cost o an estimated $1.5 million,

the electricity demand will be reduced by about

50 megawatts (MW)," said Sohail Hasnie, ADB

principal energy specialist. The impact on the

power system will be equivalent to building a

new 50 MW power station, which would have

cost at least $50 million and taken 3 to 4 years to

build, and another $2 million to $3 million each

year to operate.

Funded in part by a $31 million ADB concessional

loan, the project will deer investments o some$450 million in new power plant construction. It

will also save about $100 million annually in uel

costs and avoid 300,000 tons o carbon dioxide

emissions annually by reducing power generation.

While the average incandescent bulb lasts

only about 800 hours, the new CFLs last up

to 10,000 hours, substantially reducing the

residential customer's energy consumption and

electric bill. Each customer can then save up

to P 400 ($8.60) per bulb each year or the next

7 to 10 years.

Retrot, Reduce, and ReplaceThe PEEP will retrot government oce

buildings and public lighting systems with other

ecient lighting options. It has established an

energy service company as a one-stop shop

to provide nancial and technical support to

companies and institutions planning to reduce

energy consumption (such as hospitals, schools,

government oces, hotels, and malls).

"With this project in place, the chances o

brownouts are now getting slimmer," declared

Energy Undersecretary Roy Kyamko during

the recent project launching. With the savings

in megawatts, the load that will be prevented

through the use o CFLs can be redistributed to

other parts o the Visayas," he added.

In Cebu, privately owned businesses have resorted

to using their own generators during scheduled

power interruptions. The citys rotating brownouts,

as requent as three times a day, are caused by

Project Information

Philippine Energy Eciency Project (20092011)


(ADB); $1.5 million, Clean Energy FacilityAsian

Clean Energy Fund (ADB)



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12TALAVERA, NUEVA ECIJA, PHILIPPINES

milk drinker showed of a svelte gure and

youthul looks that belie her age. I not only stay

t and slim, I also have no hypertension because

o low levels o cholesterol rom carabao milk,

she declared.

Milk rom carabao, a type o water bufalo,

is gaining popularity. The Nueva Ecija Federation

o Dairy Carabao Cooperativesin Talavera, a

town amous or its resh carabao milk and sweets

RitaFestin

Promising but cash-poor agricultural ventures across

the Philippines are taking advantage o an ADB

project that provides unds or equipment, transport

networks, and other acilities, helping poor armersscale up their incomes.

By Rita R. Festin

How to MilkCarabaos

Carabao milk brings income ormembers o the Dairy CarabaoCooperative.

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The words carabao and slim do not

normally occupy the same thought. But

or health-conscious ans o the milk rom

this rotund icon o Philippine agriculture,

which has less at than cows milk, they go

together like bread and butter.

Joyce Ramones o the agrarian reorm oce in

Nueva Ecija is living proo that carabao milk is

healthul. At 46 years old, this regular carabao-



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called pastillas de lecheproduces the most milk

in the province. From its 27 armer cooperatives

and 5 associatemember cooperatives, it procures

1,000 to 1,200 liters o milk daily, enough or

a small-scale operation.

Yet even that ell ar short o the 5,000 liter

requirement, or example, o a major ice cream

maker that approached them or an exclusive

supply contract.

From its early ragtag operations using plastic

pails and containers, the ederation has been

transormed into a modern and sanitary enterprise

using stainless-steel containers or collection

and storage. It started with only nine member

cooperatives in 2002, when it became apparent

that an umbrella group could better distribute

the highly perishable dairy product and compete

or better pricing and quality control. Most o itsdaily volume, or 650 liters, is sold as raw milk, and

the rest processed. It also markets dairy products

to major ood and git stores in Metro Manila and

other big cities.

Going NationwideADB ts into this picture through the

Agrarian Reorm Communities Project (ARCP)

implemented by the governments Department

o Agrarian Reorm, and providing about

P 500,000 ($10,752) worth o equipment or milk

collection, quality control, bee management,

and training.

The nationwide ARCPto which ADB contributed

a $93.2 million loan out o a total project cost o

$168.9 million in 1998beneted nearly 30,000 rural

households or 140 agrarian reorm communities in

almost 1,000 poverty-stricken villages.

To qualiy, armers had to own land but lack the

basic inrastructure and support services needed

to reap its ull potential. They also had to organize

themselves into agrarian reorm communities. The

project provided these communities with roads,

bridges, communal irrigation, drinking water

sources, or other inrastructurewhatever was

deemed necessary.

With the success o the ARCP, completed in 2007,

ADB approved Phase II in October 2008, ocusing

on the southern Philippines, where three-quarters

o the countrys rural poor live. The ARCP II will

assist 152 agrarian reorm communities covering

731 barangays (districts) in 137 municipalities

HowtoMilk

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o 18 provinces in 6 regions. Beneciaries are

expected to increase to about 215,000 rural

community members with the inclusion

o the 3 provinces in the Autonomous Region

in Muslim Mindanao.

For the ederation in Nueva Ecija, besides the

equipment, the ARCP provided six arm-to-market

road networks in Talavera to improve access to

markets and reduce transport and hauling costs.

ARCP unds built the concrete road leading to the

cooperatives milk collection and processing and

marketing center in the Unlad Buhay agrarian

reorm community, in barangay San Ricardo.

Typhoon ProofThe ederation helped provide armers with

lucrative income opportunities. Andy Vallarte, 64,

the ederations vice chair and one o almost

700 armers supplying milk, earns P 29 ($0.62) perliter rom the 10 to 11 liters a day he milks rom his

two carabaos. That means that, rain or shine,

he nets up to P 8,000 ($172) per carabao per

month. He would earn the same rom a 1-hectare

rice eld per year.

I dont have any losses in dairy arming. Even i

there is a typhoon, I can still milk my carabao, said

Vallarte. He no longer incurs high-interest debt

just to get by, and i he needs to borrow money or

an emergency, he can pay it back right away with

his income rom carabao milk.

Long known as the rice bowl o the Philippines,

Nueva Ecija could soon also be known as the

dairy capital. Indeed, with milk and dairy

products accounting or a quarter o total

agricultural imports, the potential or carabao

milk arming is promising. n

Project Information

Agrarian Reorm Communities Project

(19972007)

Financing: $119.7 million ($72.6 million,

ordinary capital resources [ADB]; $47.1 million,

Government o the Philippines [national

government, local government units, Land Bank

o the Philippines, and other nanciers])

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Farm-to-market roads stimulate development in rural

Eastern Samar and boost armers incomes along the way.

By Rita R. Festin

Roads toBank On

This new road through thewoods links armers to markets.

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DOLORES, EASTERN SAMAR, PHILIPPINES

In the past, Arnold Jocosol, 38, a armer in thetown o Dolores, in the province o Eastern

Samar, could only transport his produce rom

his arm to the nearest market via carabao

(water bufalo). And there was no road to speak o.

Then, in 2008, a road was built right in ront o

Jocosols home. He knew it would be a big help

to his amily.

I did not even dream there would be a road

here, he told a visiting group o ADB Board

members. But he hoped that the road would

bring him the capital he would need or other

income-generating activities, including a piggery

and a mini-store.

Roads Out of PovertyEastern Samar struggles with a high rate o

poverty. According to the National Statistical

Coordination Board, the provinces poverty levels

decreased substantially rom 2000 to 2003. Many

believed that investments in education, social

services, inrastructure, and livelihoods werebearing ruit.

According to available data, however, poverty

was again on the rise, at least as o 2006.

Ben Evardone, the provinces two-term governor,

continues to push or growth, particularly by

trying to gain a slice o the booming tourism

industry. There is much to recommend Eastern

Samar to tourists. The waves are so strong here,

even outside o typhoon season, that it has

become a popular destination or surers. The

region is also rich in history: it was on Homonhon

Island that the Portuguese explorer Ferdinand

Magellan rst set oot in the Philippines, in 1521.

But bad roads have held back the development

o a thriving tourism industry. In act, they

have held back development altogether.

Eastern Samar was once notorious or the poor

condition o its highways. Not anymore, thanks

to support rom ADB.

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Getting Farmers to MarketsThe construction o new arm-to-market roads

in the hinterlands, supported by the national

government and multilateral agencies such as

ADB, has dramatically increased the incomes oarmers like Jocosol, by providing easier and aster

access to markets.

Under the Agrarian Reorm Communities Project,

about P 200 million ($4.5 million) worth o arm-

to-market roads were built or rehabilitated in

a number o Eastern Samar cities and towns,

including Borongan, General MacArthur, Hernani,

Llorente, Maydolong, Quinapondan, San Julian,

and Sulat.

The project allocated up to P 30 million ($645,200)

to each municipality to build roads and bridges.

It provided or investments in communal

irrigation, drinking water supply, and other basic

inrastructure. The project also provided land

survey, agribusiness, and community development

assistance, and promoted comprehensive bottom

up community participation.

For the rural inrastructure subprojects, local

governments contributed counterpart unding.

The projects successul rating rom ADB has

led to the approval o a second phase, targeting

150,000 poor armers, mostly in the southern

Philippines.

Impact of InfrastructureStill in efect in the province is another

ADB loan or the Inrastructure or Rural

Productivity Enhancement Sector (InRES)

Project, implemented with the governments

Department o Agriculture. As part o this

scheme, some P 309.9 million ($6.7 million)

worth o arm-to-market roads and bridges are

being built or rehabilitated.

The project benets local governments in

regions where over 70% o poor Filipinos live.

Instead o the national government imposing

the project on them, local governments identiy

and develop projects based on their own designs

and implementation processes. Hal o the

project cost is unded by the ADB loan, while the

national and local governments and beneciaries

shoulder the other hal, in cash or in kind.

The project aims to increase rural incomes,

on the premise that a major cause o poverty

The project providedinvestments in communalirrigation, drinking water supply,and other basic inrastructure.Rit

aFestin

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A major inrastructure project in the rural Philippinesboosts agricultural trade.

Roads

to

B

k O

Project Information

Agrarian Reorm Communities Project(Department o Agrarian Reorm [DAR]) (19972015)


(ADB); $253,000, Japan Special Fund (ADB);

$30.0 million, OPEC (Organization o Petroleum

Exporting Countries) Fund or International

Development; $56.0 million, local government units;

$52.4 million, Government o the Philippines

Agrarian Reorm Communities Project II (DAR)

(20062015)

Financing: $250,000, Technical Assistance Special

Fund (ADB)

Inrastructure or Rural Productivity EnhancementSector Project (19992011)

Financing: $800,000, Technical Assistance Special

Fund (ADB); $75.0 million, ordinary capital

resources (ADB); $28.3 million, local government

units; $8.5 million, beneciaries; $1.0 million,

International Labour Organization; $37.2 million,

Government o the Philippines

We have very rich rice landand this will be the key tothe development o EasternSamar.

Emiliana Villacarillo, mayor of Dolores

is inadequate rural inrastructure. The project

avors poor areas with high agricultural

potential, providing them with roads, communal

irrigation systems, and drinking water. Some

700,000 people rom arm and nonarm

households are the beneciaries.

InRES will revolutionize the rural areas, said

Evardone, citing the positive impacts o the

new roads, and the resulting quick transport

between neighborhoods and districts.

The project is expected to increase trade,

industry, and entrepreneurship in the afected

communities, as well as shorten travel time and

reduce transport costs.

Tapping Potential and Pursuing ProgressIn the town o Dolores, the arm-to-market

road was much-delayed due to a change in

contractors and bad weather (including heavy

rains), but the towns mayor was determinedto nish it because it could spur her towns

economic growth.

We have very rich rice land and this will be

the key to the development o Eastern Samar,

said Mayor Emiliana Villacarillo. We have

over 5,300 hectares o irrigable land, she said.

Dolores boasts the biggest irrigation project in

the region.

The project in Dolores is critical, agreed Evardone,

because Dolores is the second-highest rice-

producing municipality in Eastern Samar.

Spanning 28.5 kilometers, the P 100 million

($2.2 million) road is a combination o newly

opened and rehabilitated components. It

traverses 13 neighborhoods, beneting

two-thirds o the towns 46,000 people. Each

neighborhood maintains the portion o the road

in its area to ensure sustainability.

The good roads have beneted the

municipalities. Local government units unable to

avail themselves o the project have submitted

proposals or the projects second phase. The

project could make a big diference in reducing

poverty in Eastern Samar.

That said, Evardone acknowledges that he and

his colleagues in government still have a lot o

work to do to sustain their early gains in poverty

reduction and to resist alling behind again. n

RitaFestin

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A bridge and a arm-to-market road in Davao del Sur bring renewed

prosperity and security to troubled Mindanao

By Ramoncito dela Cruz

A Drive forProgress and Peace

18

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A delivery man uses the new ADB-supported road in Davao del Sur.

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MALABANG, DAVAO DEL SUR, PHILIPPINES

Despite abundant natural resources, the

southern Philippine island o Mindanao

was neglected or decades. Years o

internal strie stunted development

and pushed many o Mindanaos people to the

margins. But new roads and bridges are bringing

renewed prosperity to this troubled region.

Ten years ago, the nearly 1,000 people who live

in the village o Malabang rarely encountered

motor vehicles on the almost-impassable dirt road

linking their neighborhood to the town center.

But things have changed or this village, which

sits upland rom the town o Hagonoy in the

province o Davao del Sur. The government

completed a bridge over the treacherous

Bulatukan River in 2002 and a new arm-to-market

road in 2004both supported by ADB.

Malabangs residents used to trek or more than

2 hours to reach the town market in Haganoy,

only 8 kilometers away. Travelers started out on

a bicycle with an improvised cart, then crossed

the Bulatukan on bamboo rats. Once on the

other side, they typically rode motorcycles to the

market, where they bought goods to meet their

daily needs.

Greater Connectivity, More ProsperityToday, because o the arm-to-market road

nanced by ADBs Agrarian Reorm CommunitiesProject, people in Malabang can drive arm

harvests to market in trucks, and return with daily

basic supplies to sell to neighborhood stores.

Instead o us going to town to replenish our

stocks, I now buy my stocks rom traders who

come here twice a week to sell their products, said

Lourdes Babor, 43, who sells canned goods, instant

noodles, and bath products in her retail store. This

way, we save on our transport costs.

Beore the new bridge, armers used river crat

to transport their produce across the Bulatukan.

The river would become impassable during

heavy rains, and armers had to use a roundabout

route, taking two or even three times as long to

complete their journey.

These days, not only can armers get their goods

to market easily, but the road and bridge have also

encouraged big and small businesses to ock to

Malabang because o its ertile armland. These

businesses are contracting local people to plant

bananas, sugar cane, and rice on nearby arms.

Our livelihood has become better. Those without

jobs beore are now employed by the businesses

here, said Primitiva Cablinda, 55. She added that

many young people now earn P 280 ($6) per day

plus benets. This is a sizeable addition to the

income o poor amilies, enabling some to save or

invest in new ventures.

Like many o her neighbors, Cablinda used the

savings rom her extra earnings to start a small

piggery behind her house.

Driving Away DangerBeore the roads, residents also lived in ear o

rebels toting Armalite assault ries, who roamed

the mountains, extorting money and producerom armers. In the 1980s, rebels attacked the

house o an uncooperative armer. Fortunately,

nobody was hurt. In 2000, they gunned down a

neighborhood security patrol during a estivity.

It was not sae at all. They were extorting money,

especially in the more remote part o the village,

said Cablinda, who grew up in the area and now

serves as secretary o the local council. Many

people moved out o the community.

As a result o the new road, police and health

workers can reach the people in Malabang morerequently and with greater ease.

Nowadays, we have the ull support o the local

government. Police can easily respond to any

disturbance in the area, Cablinda said.

Success in SemongThe village o Semong, in Davao del Norte province,

aced the same challenges that plagued Malabang.

In 2007, the Inrastructure or Rural Productivity

Enhancement Sector Project (InRES) unded

the construction o a 9,785-kilometer road and

a 54-meter bridge. Now, Semong is easily accessible

to traders and investors alike.

Charlie de Vera, 33, is building a bigger

house or himsel and his wie. He attributes his

new prosperity to the arm-to-market road,

which has reduced transport costs or his

produce and increased the prots rom his rice

and banana harvests.

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We used to pay P 40 ($0.86) per sack to

get our produce to the market. Now, its the

trader who comes to us to buy our harvest,

de Vera said.

Eugene Timplado, a buying agent or a multi-

national ruit company, said that armers in

Semong can now sell at higher rates since

many buyers are competing or their harvest.

Roads to Progress and PeaceFarm-to-market roads not only link armers

to buyers, but they also bring opportunities

and hope to the once-neglected towns. Ater

roads are established, other services usually

ollow. Health care, education, and business

opportunities become more accessible.

For children, their schools are easier to

reach. Charleston Mainit, 12, used to trudge

by bicycle along muddy trails or an hour

to get to school. But thanks to a new ADB-

supported road in his neighborhood,

Charleston can ride there in just 15 minutes.

Women Walk Prosperitys Path

The arm-to-market roads that ADB has helped

build in Mindanao's villages have created morejobs or women.

As banana companies move into these newlyaccessible towns, they seek to hire women as

banana handlers and sorters. Banana companiespreer women or these positions because the

ruit are prone to bruising, and companies believewomen will handle them more careully.

In a sorting station near Semong, more than

30 women select and sort bananas or major oodcompanies, earning more than P 4,000 ($86) per

month. The group lls more than 1,000 boxes obananas each day.

Employed by a local cooperative, Merly JaneSocorin said the additional income enables her

to buy school supplies or her three children aswell as help take care o some o the amilys daily

expenses. "We have also saved some money orour uture," Socorin said.

Farmers can get goods to marketaster now, ueling business.

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Beyond Livelihoods,Road Saves Lives

Alredo Lacerona, 44, almost lost his lie ona medical mission to the other side o Semong

in the early 2000s.

The river current was very strong, we almost

drowned, said the doctor, one o manyexperiences he has had as a health worker in

Kapalong municipality.

That was beore the Semong bridge was

completed in 2007, part o the arm-to-marketroad projects supported by ADB.

Beore the bridge, residents on the ar sideo Semong were cut of rom the main town

o Kapalong in the Davao del Norte province,especially during the rainy season.

Sick people had to wait or the raging waterto subside beore they could saely cross the

river to visit the community health centeron the other side, sometimes risking seriouscomplications or even death.

I know o one case where an expectant

mother was bleeding prousely on the otherside o the river, but she had to wait or thewater to subside beore she could cross over,

said Lacerona. Luckily, the mother was ableto deliver her baby saely in the community

center despite the delay.

The bridge also means people on the ar side

o the river can benet rom preventive healthmeasures. Lacerona said that the Kapalong

health center can now control malaria betterthrough regular monitoring by health workers,

who visit the area more requently. At the sametime, residents are able to get to the health

center more easily or regular checkups.

We now have zero malaria cases in the area.

Malaria has been under control since lastyear due to regular monitoring and ollow-up

with the patients, said Lacerona. The peoplethere can now go to the neighborhood health

stations by riding a motorcycle, any time andunder any weather condition.

ADrivefor

P

d PChildren are more excited to go to school, said

Nestor Alcoran, mayor o New Corella in Davao

del Norte, about the new road. They dont have

to walk very ar.

TomasEricSales

Women benet rom the arrival omore banana companies and thejobs they bring.

Project Information

Agrarian Reorm Communities Project (19972007)


(ADB); $253,000, Japan Special Fund (ADB);

$15.7 million, local government units; $32.5 million,

agrarian reorm communities; $19.3 million, Land

Bank o the Philippines

Inrastructure or Rural Productivity Enhancement

Sector Project (19992011)


(ADB); $800,000, Technical Assistance Special

Fund (ADB); $28.3 million, local governments;

$8.5 million, beneciaries; $1.0 million,

International Labour Organization; $37.2 million,

Government o the Philippines

And Hagonoy mayor, Franco Magno Calida,

said o Malabang: It used to be a sleepy and

poor town. But now, they have good living

standards. People live more harmoniously with

each other. Theres less criminality. Overall,

the town now has development, progress,

and peace.n

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ADBs support or the renovation o a highway north o

the Philippines capital, Manila, has transormed the areas

economic landscape.

Life in theFast Lane

By Floyd Whaley

A new highway north o Manila isgenerating economic benets.

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MANILA, PHILIPPINES

At World Wide Auctioneers, north

o Manila, businesspeople rom

all over the world wander among

hundreds o trucks, cranes, and

other heavy equipment. They are deciding

what they want to bid on at an upcoming

multimillion-dollar auction.

The businesspeople rom around the world,

the heavy equipment they are buying, and

the auction company all have one thing in

common: they are here because o the North

Luzon Expressway.

Most o our equipment comes up the North

Luzon Expressway rom the Manila port, and

most o our customers come up the highway

rom the Manila airport, said Eric Montandon,

chair and chie executive ocer o World Wide

Auctioneers, which also maintains auction

sites in Lebanon, the United Arab Emirates,

and the United States. Said Montandon,

We wouldnt have been able to locate our

business here without the renovation o the

expressway.

A Dramatic ShiftADBs North Luzon Expressway Rehabilitation

and Expansion Project helped renovate an

83.7-kilometer section o the road and build or

rehabilitate 14 interchanges, 24 bridges, and

31 overpasses rom Manila to the Clark Special

Economic Zone in Pampanga province.

The project, a long time in the making,

resulted in a landmark nancing plan that

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24

engaged the private sector in inrastructure

building in a new way. In the early 1990s, the

government recognized the need to upgrade

and modernize the 30-year-old highway. The road

had allen into disrepair, with ooded sections,potholes, and trac congestion.

Despite the highways poor condition, trac grew

signicantly rom 1992 to 1997. Commuters had

little choice but take the highway, whatever its

condition. It was the only major thoroughare

going north rom Manila.

The government and ADB, the lead nancing

agency, worked together to assemble a

$378 million loan package, provided primarily

by the private sector. ADB provided a loan o

$45 million and coordinated a loan o $25 million

by a group o international commercial banks.

For users o the highway, the impact has been

dramatic. The road used to be a heavily potholed,

two-lane thoroughare where overloaded trucks,

speeding buses, and private vehicles dangerously

competed or space. Today, it is a sae, smooth

tollway with good lighting, modern signage, and

vigorous enorcement o trac laws.

Signs of GrowthWe have seen this business thrive due to

the renovation o the highway, said Adonis

Baluyot, ormer chair o the North Luzon

Expressway Billboard Association. Thebusiness barely existed beore. People didnt

want to put their company advertisements on

the old road.

He noted that more than 50 billboards have

been erected since the renovation, creating

dozens o jobs or those who install and

maintain the billboards, raising millions o

pesos in revenue or advertising companies,

and channeling business toward the

companies that use the billboards.

There is a saying that the economic health

o an area can be judged by the number and

quality o billboards, said Baluyot. I so, this

areas economy is very healthy.

Travelers WelcomeThe highway also opened up the picturesque

areas in the north to greater tourism. The

Spanish colonial city o Vigan, the historic rice

terraces o Iugao, and the beaches o La Union

The upgraded North LuzonExpressway is viewed rom the air.

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Even though I was only about

100 kilometers rom my amily,

I couldnt get home to see them

because o the bad road. Now I

see them every weekend.

Elmer Rotoni, professional driver

and Pagudpud used to be easily reached only

by air. It required a much more arduous trip to

reach some o the top tourist destinations by

car. Today, most areas can be reached in a day.

In Central Luzon, the area that benets most

rom the new highway, tourism has risen

steadily in the last 3 years, according to the

governments Department o Tourism, with a

24% increase rom 2007 to 2008. In 2009, the

region had a total o 550,277 visitors.

Jim Sebree, a retired United States Air Force

ocer, operates the popular Cottage Kitchen

Ca, in Angeles City, adjacent to the highway.

He has seen business increase by about 15%

since the upgraded highway opened. In

response, Sebree has doubled his oor space

and taken on new employees.

It used to be a real challenge, getting to our

place beore they xed the highway, said

Sebree. People always enjoyed our ood, but

the [renovated] highway made our location

more convenient. Now, he said, travelers

heading north or returning to Manila can easily

stop or a meal along the way.

An ADB review o the highway renovation

project ound that the average daily trac

rom January to March 2009 was at 149,430

vehicle entries, the highest rst-quarter

trac since commercial operations started

in 2005, and 2.87% higher than the previous

record145,258 vehicles in 2007.

Bringing Families TogetherThe highways renovation has shown impressive

results, but or Elmer Rotoni, its all about his

1-year-old son, Carl. The proessional driver

works in the northern province o Zambales, but

his wie and young son live in the capital.

Beore the upgrade o the highway, Rotoni, 41,

spent weeks away rom his wie. The commute

was too unpredictable and arduous to complete

regularly. Ater the highway was renovated,

Rotoni could reliably make his commute to his

amily in about 2.5 hours rom his provincialworkplace to Manila.

Now, Rotoni can get home ater work on Friday

night and play with his young son beore he

sleeps, then spend the weekend with his amily,

and be back to work Monday morning. He can

also get home quickly or amily emergencies or

special occasions.

Even though I was only about 100 kilometers

rom my amily, I couldnt get home to see them

because o the bad road. Now I see them every

weekend and Im a bigger part o their lives,said Rotoni. For me, the highway has meant the

reunion o my amily.n

Project Information

Manila North Tollways (20062009)

Financing: $45.0 million, private sector loan (ADB);

$25.0 million, complementary nancing scheme

involving international commercial banks



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Chasing Buses,Chasing ProtsA new bus terminal improves the livelihoods o the

women who board buses to sell snacks, drinks, orsouvenirs to passengers.


26

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PANABO CITY, DAVAO DEL NORTE, PHILIPPINES

Helen Dolino used to chase buses up

and down the main road o Panabo

City in the southern Philippines. She

and several other vendors would

scramble up to the buses and hawk their

warescigarettes, biscuits, and candiesto

weary travelers plying the main highway that

links northern and southern Mindanao Island.

We would run rom one bus to the other to

sell our merchandise since there was no

designated terminal or provincial buses and

jeepneys [mini-buses], recalled Dolino.

It was chaotic, she said, and did not result in

many sales.

That changed in 2007, when the city

government opened an integrated bus and

jeepney terminal along the main highway o

Panabo, with unding rom ADB through the

Mindanao Basic Urban Services Sector Project.

The new terminal brought order to the loading

and unloading o passengers and goods. It also

provided retail stalls or small businesses.

Today, with the new terminal, the government

allows ambulant vendors like Dolino to display

merchandise or ree in small commercial spaces,as long as they undergo training at the nearby

Panabo Women Resource Center, and do not

approach buses or solicit passengers.

The Panabo Women Resource Center was built

through a P 5 million ($107,500) grant rom

ADBs Japan Fund or Poverty Reduction. The

center teaches poor women in Panabo City

new ways to improve their incomes, and then

helps them set up small ood stores or their

products. So ar, it has trained more than 100

women vendors, including Dolino.

The centers training modules include ood

processing or native delicacies, ruit processing,

and ice-cream making, as well as simple

accounting and bookkeeping or the vendors. It

will train about 1,600 poor women.

Beore the Panabo Women Resource Center,

there were times when Dolino and her riends

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Vendors sell ood and drinks to buspassengers in Panabo City.



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would have so little money at the end o the

day, they would go to the local social welare

oce to ask or rice and dried sh to bring

home to their amilies.

But these days, Dolino is able to sell ood

produced by women at the center. Because

o these, we now have extra income. We now

can earn P 100 to P 300 ($2.15 to $6.45) more

each day, she said.

We now have extra income. We now can earn P 100 to P 300($2.15 to $6.45) more each day.

Helen Dolino, food vendor

With their new stands, womenvendors earn extra income.

Alice Buenae, 46, is also one o the centers

beneciaries. She can be seen selling its

merchandise at the terminal rom 4:00 a.m. to

5:00 p.m. almost every day. Because all public

transport has to stop by the terminal, making it

a natural retail and commercial hub, Buenae said

sales have been steadily rising.

She recently nished her training or ice-cream

making, which has had a measurable impact on

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Project Information

Mindanao Basic Urban Services Sector Project

(20032010)

Financing: $1.0 million, Japan Special Fund (ADB);

$30.0 million, ordinary capital resources (ADB)

I get earn money or my amily romworking at the center, especiallyduring down time at the market.It has increased our amily income.

Anecita Buenaor, vegetable vendor

her nances. The center has helped me increase

our amily income, said Buenae, whose husband

is also an ambulant vendor. Their combined daily

income now averages around P 1,200 ($26).

Vegetable vendor Anecita Buenaor visits the

center during her ree time to help prepare

bichoa sweet pastryor sale at the center,

which is just two blocks rom her stall. She earns

extra money, especially during down time at the

market. It has increased our amily income, said

the mother o eight.

The center also operates a preschool or

the children o market vendors. This year,

37 pupils have been enrolled. The preschool

allows these busy women to have peace o

mind, knowing that their children are sae and

learning, just nearby.

Chasin

gBuses,

C h i

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Women learn income-generatingskills at the Panabo WomenResource Center.

ADBs Japan Fund or Poverty Reduction is also

nancing the construction o women resource

centers in six other provinces in Mindanao.n

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In Mindanao, clean water keeps children healthier,

improves business, and allows women to engage in

more income-generating activities.

Fount of Lifeand Livelihood


NAAWAN, MISAMIS ORIENTAL, PHILIPPINES

The southern Philippine island o

Mindanao has abundant water resources,

yet many o its residents still do not have

easy access to potable water in their

homes. The Mindanao Basic Urban Services Sector

Projectunded by a loan o $336,959 rom ADB

to the Land Bank o the Philippinesis helping

change that.

Safe Water, Healthy ChildrenWe used to etch water rom a creek 2 kilometers

away rom our home. For children, the trek was

simply too ar, said Geralyn Emperado o Naawan,

in the province o Misamis Oriental. As a child, she

used to wake up at dawn to etch water rom a

creek beore going to school.

Besides sufering rom lack o sleep and sore

muscles, some small children developed rashes

and other skin blemishes because the river

in which they bathed was not always clean.

Sometimes there would be some bufaloes doing

their thing upstream, Emperado chuckled.

But now she is assured that the water coming

out o the tap is clean and will ow 24 hours a

dayhelping her care or her 3-year-old son and

2-month-old baby.

We are grateul or the clean water, said Emperado,

Its a great convenience or me, especially ater

30

Estrella Zara has more timeto play with her grandchildsince a water tap was installedin her neighborhood.

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Water is sae to drink straightrom the tap.

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giving birth. I need clean water to bathe; my baby

also needs clean water.

Naawan, a town with about 20,000 people, has

received unding rom ADB through the project,

which supports various community-based

initiatives such as water-supply systems, transport

terminals, and public markets in several towns

across the island.

This project has not only broadened the coverage

o the water supply and increased the pressure o

water in taps, it has also made the water systems

more ecient. Today, less water is lost through

leakage than with the old, dilapidated system.

Clear Water, Satised CustomersIn neighboring Manticao, Julieto Vicariato said

that beer-colored water coming out o his

water pump had turned many customers of his

roadside eatery.

We couldnt serve it to our guests and

customers, even though tests had shown that

the water was actually sae to drink, he said. It

ruined our business.

To get clean water or drinking and laundry,Vicariato would either hike to the creek several

times a day to ll eight containers, or pay

somebody to etch water rom the town center.

O course, Im happy now, he said, ater the

project extended the water supply line to his

village in 2005. My daily lie is not as burdensome

as it was beore. And there are more customers

coming here to eat.

Accessible Water, Active CommunitiesIn a valley under the majestic Mount Apo, the

local government, with ADBs assistance through

the Agrarian Reorm Communities Project,

installed communal taps in Mahayahay village,

Davao del Sur province, where residents used to

sufer rom waterborne diseases.

You should taste and see how clean the water is,

Mayor Franco Magno Calida told visitors. We are

100% sure that the system is giving the people

sae water.

Its a great convenience or me, especially ater giving birth.I need clean water to bathe; my baby also needs clean water.

Geralyn Emperado, Naawan resident

Aside rom sae drinking water, the system

which distributes water through communal taps

stretching 5.8 kilometers throughout the villages

has made peoples lives easier.

Estrella Zara let out a big sigh o relie when the

taps were installed.

We used to trek to the creek very early in the

morning to get our drinking water. We would

go back in the aternoon to do our laundry, the

55-year-old housewie said. A one-way trek to

the creek, which is about 1 kilometer away rom

her house, would take 30 minutes to 1 hour,

depending on the trails condition.

We would have sore legs and necks because the

path was hilly and winding. We also had to balance

our buckets on our heads, she recalled. The hike

would be more dicult during the rainy season,

when the path becomes slippery with mud.

Gerondia Nerosa, 77, said her children used to bear

the brunt o their poverty, since they had to wake

up early to etch water and go back again in the

aternoon or another round, leaving them with

little time to study.

Fetching water was also time-consuming because

people had to wait or their turn to ll their buckets.

There were times when ghts would break out

because o the long wait, or as a result o idle gossip

among those waiting.

It was really a waste o time, Zara said.

With water available in communal taps near their

homes, people in this village o about 1,500 now

have time to engage in more productive activities.

Children have more time to study their lessons.

People have more time to do household chores, with

some tending small vegetable gardens at home.

Zara plants okra, eggplants, tomatoes, and peppers

in her little vegetable patch. She sometimes sells

them to augment her amily income.

Most o all, I now have more time to play with my

grandchild, Zara said gleeully.n

Impact

Stories

fromthePhilippines

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Project Information

Agrarian Reorm Communities Project (19972007)

Financing: $79.3 million, ordinary capital

resources (ADB); $253,000, Japan Special Fund

(ADB); $15.7 million, local governments;

$32.5 million, agrarian reorm communities;

$19.3 million, Land Bank o the Philippines

Mindanao Basic Urban Services Sector Project

(20032010)

Financing: $1.0 million, Japan Special Fund (ADB);

$30.0 million, ordinary capital resources (ADB)

O course, Im happy now. Mydaily lie is not as burdensomeas it was beore. And there are

more customers coming hereto eat.

Julieto Vicariato, restaurant owner in Manticao

Fount

ofLife

d L i

l i h

d

Clean water makes cookingeasier and prevents illness.

TomasEricSales

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Asian Development Bank6 ADB Avenue, Mandaluyong City1550 Metro Manila, Philippineswww.adb.org

Freedom to Grow: Impact Stories from the Philippines

Almost 40% of Filipinos subsist on $2 or less per day, with many more vulnerable to falling into suchpoverty. Freedom from persistent, pervasive, and intense poverty is the cornerstone of ADBs partnershipwith the Philippine government. To maximize its impact, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) is partneringnot only with government but also with nongovernment organizations, and womens and ethnic minoritygroups to deliver income-generating activities, education and health facilities, potable water supplies,road transport in rural areas, clean energy resources, and development of lagging regions, particularlyin southern Philippines, to have real, positive impacts on peoples lives.

About the Asian Development Bank

ADBs vision is an Asia and Pacific region free of poverty. Its mission is to help its developing membercountries substantially reduce poverty and improve the quality of life of their people. Despite the regionsmany successes, it remains home to two-thirds of the worlds poor: 1.8 billion people who live on lessthan $2 a day, with 903 million struggling on less than $1.25 a day. ADB is committed to reducing povertythrough inclusive economic growth, environmentally sustainable growth, and regional integration.

Based in Manila, ADB is owned by 67 members, including 48 from the region. Its main instruments forhelping its developing member countries are policy dialogue, loans, equity investments, guarantees, grants,and technical assistance.

Philippines Country Office

Uniquely, Philippines is not only the ADBs founding member and 11th largest shareholder, butalso its host country. It is the fifth largest borrower, accounting for about 8% of total sovereignand nonsovereign lending. It is also one of the largest clients for private sector lending and equityinvestments, and is a supplier, winning bids under ADB loans and technical assistance projects.

freedom to grow: impact stories from the philippines

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