Legarda pushes anticipatory finance for climate resilience, protecting vulnerable Filipinos and empowering youth leadership

Senator Loren Legarda on Thursday called for a decisive shift from the cycle of “trauma and repair” toward proactive climate readiness, urging the Philippines to legislate for anticipation to safeguard communities before disasters strike.

Legarda delivered her keynote address at the Asia Conference on Climate Change and Disaster Resilience (ACCCDR) on April 30, 2026 at the Asian Institute of Management in Makati City before representatives from the World Bank, Asian Development Bank, Climate Change Commission, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, and leaders from climate-vulnerable cities.

She recalled warning three years ago of an “existential threat” and cited UN Secretary General António Guterres’ description of “global boiling,” noting that intensifying typhoons, rising seas, and the global unavailability of fertilizers after fossil fuel facility destruction now accelerate food crises.

“We have become experts in counting the dead and repairing the broken, but we have not yet mastered the art of anticipating the blow,” Legarda said, pointing to what she described as the dangerous “First Mile/Last Mile disconnect” where funds and policies exist but arrive too late.

“This disconnect is critical. It is the space where dreams are shattered and lives are lost. We must legislate for anticipation,” she added.

Legarda outlined three urgent priorities in her keynote. She said legislative innovation is needed to break the divide between relief and readiness, stressing that disaster funds must be released based on forecasts rather than waiting for a calamity declaration.

“We must tear down the firewall between relief and readiness,” she stated.

The four-term senator added that protecting vulnerable families must be central to fiscal policy, pushing for automatic cash transfers tied to PAGASA forecasts and embedding anticipatory action into conditional cash transfer programs for women, indigenous peoples, the elderly, PWDs, and geographically isolated communities.

Legarda further called on mayors and development partners to stop financing projects that merely restore risk and instead invest in measures that reduce it.

“If we are serious about resilience, then our financing, both the loans and the GAA, must stop restoring risk and finally start reducing it,” she said.

Legarda emphasized the financial dimension of resilience. “Resilience is also financial. It is about liquidity. It is about the speed of the peso moving from the national treasury to a local barangay before the storm makes landfall,” she said. “Anticipatory action is an exercise in risk management; it protects macroeconomic stability, reduces financial shocks, safeguards long-term growth, and is a step towards genuine climate justice.”

The senator highlighted the role of young Filipinos in building resilience, urging that they be given priority access to the People’s Survival Fund and the opportunities created by the Philippine Ecosystem and Natural Capital Accounting System (PENCAS) law, which she authored.

“We must invest in the energies and capacities of our youth. While we rightly discuss the transition to renewable energy sources, we must also recognize the human energy of our youth as our most potent renewable resource,” Legarda said.

Legarda ended by stressing that preparedness should be measured by what is prevented rather than what is rebuilt, underscoring collective resolve to confront the climate crisis in defense of life, livelihood, and the future of Filipinos.

The conference, themed “From Risk to Readiness: Investing in Climate Futures in Asia,” showcased programs such as AIM’s graduate scholarships in disaster risk and data science, building a pipeline of skilled leaders nationwide. (30)

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Legarda itinutulak ang maagap na pondo para sa klima, proteksyon sa mahihirap, at lakas ng kabataan

Nanawagan si Senadora Loren Legarda nitong Huwebes ng matatag na pagbabago mula sa siklo ng “trauma and repair” tungo sa maagap na paghahanda laban sa sakuna, hinihikayat ang bansa na magpasa ng batas para sa maagang pagtugon upang mapangalagaan ang mga komunidad bago pa man tumama ang kalamidad.

Ipinahayag ni Legarda ang kanyang keynote address sa Asia Conference on Climate Change and Disaster Resilience (ACCCDR) noong Abril 30, 2026 sa Asian Institute of Management sa Makati City, sa harap ng mga kinatawan mula sa World Bank, Asian Development Bank, Climate Change Commission, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, at mga lider mula sa mga lungsod na bulnerable sa klima.

Binalikan niya ang babala tatlong taon na ang nakalipas hinggil sa “existential threat” at binanggit ang paglalarawan ni UN Secretary General António Guterres sa “global boiling,” na nagpapakita ng tumitinding bagyo, pagtaas ng dagat, at pandaigdigang kakulangan ng pataba matapos ang pagkasira ng mga pasilidad ng fossil fuel na nagdudulot ng krisis sa pagkain.

“We have become experts in counting the dead and repairing the broken, but we have not yet mastered the art of anticipating the blow,” ani Legarda, tinutukoy ang mapanganib na “First Mile/Last Mile disconnect” kung saan may pondo at polisiya ngunit huli itong naipapatupad.

“This disconnect is critical. It is the space where dreams are shattered and lives are lost. We must legislate for anticipation,” dagdag pa niya.

Ipinahayag ni Legarda ang tatlong agarang prayoridad sa kanyang keynote. Kailangan umano ng makabagong batas upang maputol ang pagitan ng relief at readiness, binigyang-diin na ang pondo para sa sakuna ay dapat mailabas batay sa forecast at hindi na maghintay ng deklarasyon ng kalamidad.

“We must tear down the firewall between relief and readiness,” aniya.

Dagdag pa ng apat na terminong senadora, dapat gawing sentro ng patakarang piskal ang proteksyon sa mga bulnerableng pamilya, itulak ang awtomatikong cash transfers na nakatali sa forecast ng PAGASA, at isama ang anticipatory action sa conditional cash transfer programs para sa kababaihan, katutubo, nakatatanda, PWDs, at mga komunidad na hiwalay sa kabayanan.

Nanawagan din si Legarda sa mga alkalde at development partners na itigil ang pagpopondo sa mga proyektong nagbabalik lamang ng panganib at sa halip ay mag-invest sa mga hakbang na tunay na nagpapababa nito.

“If we are serious about resilience, then our financing, both the loans and the GAA, must stop restoring risk and finally start reducing it,” aniya.

Binigyang-diin ni Legarda ang dimensyong pinansyal ng resilience. “Resilience is also financial. It is about liquidity. It is about the speed of the peso moving from the national treasury to a local barangay before the storm makes landfall,” aniya. “Anticipatory action is an exercise in risk management; it protects macroeconomic stability, reduces financial shocks, safeguards long-term growth, and is a step towards genuine climate justice.”

Itinampok din ng senadora ang papel ng kabataang Pilipino sa pagpapalakas ng resilience, hinihikayat na bigyan sila ng prayoridad sa People’s Survival Fund at sa mga oportunidad na nilikha ng Philippine Ecosystem and Natural Capital Accounting System (PENCAS) law na siya ang may-akda.

“We must invest in the energies and capacities of our youth. While we rightly discuss the transition to renewable energy sources, we must also recognize the human energy of our youth as our most potent renewable resource,” ani Legarda.

Binigyang-diin ni Legarda na ang sukatan ng kahandaan ay dapat nakabatay sa kung ano ang naiwasan at hindi sa kung ano ang muling naitayo, pinagtitibay ang kolektibong paninindigan na harapin ang krisis sa klima para sa buhay, kabuhayan, at kinabukasan ng mga Pilipino.

Ang kumperensya na may temang “From Risk to Readiness: Investing in Climate Futures in Asia” ay nagpakita ng mga programa gaya ng graduate scholarships ng AIM sa disaster risk at data science, na nagtataguyod ng pipeline ng mga bihasang lider sa buong bansa. (30)