By Anna Valmero
PASIG CITY, METRO MANILA—A project that builds the capacity of indigenous peoples (IPs) to participate in local governance in Palawan topped grant applications to the Civil Society Fund (CSF) for this year, the World Bank reported.
Some ten thousand IPs in the municipality of Quezon will benefit from the project by enabling farmers’ and women’s federations to articulate their development concerns and advance the right to join local governance.
The project will receive a grant of P1.671 million and will be implemented by nonprofit Institute for the Development of Educational and Ecological Alternatives (IDEAS).
Civil society organizations such as IDEAS play an important role in the struggle for better and effective governance in the country, amplifying the needs and aspirations of the poor and marginalized sector in the development process, said World Bank country director Bert Hofman.
Development has to be more inclusive and equitable and this can be done by involving the marginalized sectors, Hofman said.
Other grant recipients include the Antique Foundation of NGOs Inc. to empower marginalized sectors in becoming proactive members of local governance, Kaabag sa Sugbu Foundation Inc. to engage citizens in budget utilization in barangays and Naga City People’s Council to institute partnership and social accountability among barangays in Naga.
Created in 1983, the Social Development Civil Society Fund (formerly known as the Small Grants Program) is one of the few global programs of the World Bank that directly funds civil society organizations.
All proposals were subjected to a three-stage evaluation and deliberation by the CSF Team.
