• CHERYL G. CRUZ
The Sangguniang Panlungsod of Bacolod has ratified June 11 a City Development Council resolution that earlier approved the P260 million Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Fund for 2026.
Of the allocation, 70 percent or P182 million will be for disaster preparedness, and the remaining 30 percent, or P78 million, earmarked as Quick Response Fund (QRF).
Under disaster preparedness, the Bacolod City DRRM Council (BCDRRMC) allotted P88 million for the operationalization of a 24/7 disaster operation center/establishment of search, rescue, retrieval, and recovery coordination center; and for stockpiling of food and nonfood supplies for victims of disasters, calamities, and other emergencies, P12,795,000.
The QRF, on the other hand, will mostly be used for immediate relief assistance, cash for work, and financial support to victims of calamity at P68 million.
BCDRRMC Resolution 002-2025 stressed that, per Republic Act 10121, or the Philippine Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Act of 2010, it is important to address “the root causes of vulnerabilities to disasters, strengthening the country’s institutional capacity for disaster risk reduction and management, and building the resilience of local communities to disasters, including climate change impacts”.
The law also states that five percent of the annual budget of a local government unit will be allocated for disaster risk reduction and management programs.
Of the P4.4 billion general appropriation of the Bacolod LGU this year, about P225 million was allotted for the operations of the DRRM Office. | CGC
