Philippines, Germany sign €5 million grant deal for climate information dissemination

The Philippine government and German development agency Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) on Friday signed a deal for a €5-million technical assistance grant to make climate information accessible to the public.

In a statement, the Department of Finance (DOF) said Finance Secretary Diokno, Climate Change Commission (CCC) Executive Director Robert Borje, GIZ country director Immanuel Gebhardt, and GIZ Principal Adviser Dr. Bjoern Surborg signed the implementation agreement for the South-South Collaboration for Climate Information and Services (SSCIS) project.

“This Project provides the Philippines with a tailored knowledge exchange and learning platform to mitigate the increasing risks posed by the climate crisis,” said Secretary Diokno in his keynote message during the ceremonial signing event on September 16, 2022.

The SSCIS project will run for five years and will primarily focus on producing usable climate information, enhancing tripartite capacities, generating science- and evidence-based knowledge products, and establishing the Climate Vulnerable Forum South-South Center of Excellence.

“The SSCIS will enable our target stakeholders, especially farmers and fisherfolk, to make informed decisions when adverse effects of climate change arise. I trust that the partnership of the CCC, the DOST-PAGASA, the University of the Philippines, and our development partners from Germany will lead to the development of resilient and adaptive communities in the Philippines,” said Diokno.

The Global Climate Risk Index 2021 ranks the Philippines fourth among countries most affected by extreme weather globally from 2000 to 2019. The country is hit by an average of 20 tropical cyclones every year.

As part of efforts to curtail the effects of climate change, the Philippines joined nearly 200 countries in a landmark deal in Paris in December 2015 to cut greenhouse gas emissions to limit the rise in global temperatures to below two degrees Celsius.

The Philippines is among countries that are most vulnerable to the ill effects of climate change.

“I urge the implementing entities of this project to ensure that these are accessible and understandable. This will enable our target stakeholders, particularly farmers and fisherfolk, to make informed decisions when adverse effects of climate change arise,” said Diokno.

“Rest assured that the Marcos administration is determined to rise to the twin challenge of recovering strongly from the pandemic and mitigating the impact of climate change,” said the Finance chief. — DVM, GMA News