Keynote Address Secretary Arsenio M. Balisacan PCSD Experts’ Forum on Land Use 28 February 2013 Crowne Plaza Manila Galleria, Ortigas Center, Quezon City

Ladies and gentlemen, fellow advocates of sustainable development, good morning.

On behalf of the Philippine Council for Sustainable Development (PCSD), I would like to welcome all of you to this forum on land use and management. 

As you all know, the present administration’s inclusive growth agenda goes hand in hand with our efforts on poverty reduction as we enable more opportunities for all, particularly the poor and most vulnerable sectors of society, toward sustainable development. 

Achieving this, however, requires taking determined steps to overcome certain challenges that face our country. Among these pressing challenges is the absence of a comprehensive national land use policy, which could more effectively guide our efforts to promote and attain sustainable development for our country.

As our nation moves forward to a higher growth trajectory, there must be a conscious effort to balance economic development and ecological integrity in order to ensure the sustainability of our resources, especially in light of climate change and the impact of recent typhoons on our communities. By setting in place appropriate use of our resources, particularly our lands and waters, the damage caused by natural disasters to lives and properties could be significantly reduced, if not totally prevented.

It is with this awareness that the National Land Use and Management Act had been formulated. This proposed Act aims to harmonize the existing conflicts in land use such as agrarian reform, protected areas, ancestral domain, fisheries, forestry, agriculture, mining, and settlements, to enable the proper use of our resources now and in the coming years. Currently, this proposed Act has obtained the nod of the House of Representatives, and awaits passage in the Senate.

Today’s forum has been organized to further our understanding of the relevant elements of the proposed Act as well as determine key issues and possible improvements needed to make it work efficiently and effectively. We have thus invited to this forum the country’s leading experts on land use, including urban, regional and environmental practitioners. Their presence and contributions can help us more comprehensively discuss the proposed Act as we seek consensus toward achieving sustainable development for our country.

The output of this forum will be a set of recommendations that will help operationalize the proposed Act to resolve conflicting issues. These recommendations will then be utilized by the PCSD to assist policy makers, government agencies, NGOs, CSOs, and other stakeholders for more informed decisions on land use and management in our country.

We greatly appreciate your active participation in this forum and, more broadly, in realizing sustained and inclusive growth for our nation.

A pleasant day to all of us.

Maraming Salamat po.

M.R. No. 2013-027                                                                                

28 February 2013