Climate change program in Borongan another casualty of US aid freeze
TACLOBAN CITY—A project aiming to prepare Borongan City in Eastern Samar to combat the impact of climate change is among the programs halted by the freeze on American government aid ordered by United States President Donald Trump.
Mayor Jose Ivan Dayan Agda said Borongan was one of the beneficiaries of the Climate Resilient Cities program, being undertaken by Catholic Relief Services (CRS) through funding from the United States Agency for International Development (Usaid). The five-year program, which started in 2020, focuses on climate change adaptation, energy and water security.
Agda said if the US government would not reconsider the decision to stop aid and the program would be eventually discontinued, the city government would have to find ways to fund its related activities.
He said the program was timely in the wake of climate change, “but if only we can afford to fund it.”
Agda did not disclose the specific amount invested in the city by CRS and Usaid.
Borongan is one of the most vulnerable areas to natural disasters in Eastern Visayas region, as it is frequently hit by typhoons, which often cause flooding and landslides.
Agda, however, said he was pleased that other programs funded by other countries and organizations continued to operate in his city.
These include programs funded by Bloomberg on youth climate change, the Japan International Cooperation Agency on water security and the Korean International Cooperation Agency on climate change adaptation.
Borongan was the second city in Eastern Visayas to feel the impact of funding cuts from the American government upon Trump’s assumption into office in January.
Earlier, an official from Tacloban City, the regional capital of Leyte, revealed that two USAID-funded programs in their city were also affected by the freeze order.
Janis Canta, head of the city planning and development office, identified these as Urban Connect and Cities for Enhanced Governance and Engagement (Change).
Under the Urban Connect program, Usaid assisted the Tacloban city government in drafting its land use plan, tourism development plan and digitalization of its business one-stop shop, among other initiatives.
Assurance of support
The Change program provided training and helped establish a local people’s council in Tacloban.
But US Ambassador to the Philippines MaryKay Carlson assured that the Philippines would remain a very important partner.
Carlson gave the assurance during a meeting with Negros Occidental Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson and other officials at the provincial capitol in Bacolod City on Feb. 25.
Provincial Administrator Rayfrando Diaz, who was at the governor’s meeting with the ambassador, echoed Carlson’s statement regarding the issue.
“She said do not be afraid about the suspension of assistance. It will come [back]. It’s more of an assurance of friendship. The bond between the United States and the Philippines will still be there,” Diaz said.
“The ambassador assured that the friendship between the Philippines and the United States will not diminish, but on the other hand it might even increase in terms of support, partnership and collaboration,” he added.
In a brief interview, Carlson said she had a “great meeting with the governor talking about all of the issue areas where the United States and the Philippines are doing a lot together.”
USAID has been assisting Negros Occidental in its bulk water project, and in other projects that have been included in the freeze order.
“There is no clear statement on the continuation of the US water projects in Negros but there is an assurance that we should just wait and that help will come,” Diaz said.
