In the Philippines, designing and investing in a safe, climate-resilient road network is a must for ensuring infrastructure dependability. Roads are an important part of disaster risk management but can be very vulnerable amid the rising threat of climate change.
The World Bank is preparing the Mindanao Transport Connectivity Improvement Project (MTCIP, P177017) to improve connectivity, climate resilience, and safety of selected roads in the Mindanao region. To that end, a multi-hazard risk assessment study of the entire national road network in Mindanao is supporting the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) to evaluate climate risks of road infrastructure and develop appropriate adaptation measures, with support from the Global Facility for Disaster Reduction and Recovery (GFDRR) Japan-World Bank Program for Mainstreaming Disaster Risk Management in Developing Countries (the GFDRR Japan Program) and Tokyo Disaster Risk Management Hub.
To share the study results, two days of training and a one day workshop were organized in Manila, Philippines on October 8 to 10 for delegates from DPWH, the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS) and Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) for the training, and regional office of the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA), Local Government Units (LGUs), the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), and the Mindanao Development Authority (MinDA) for the workshop in addition to the training participants. Japanese experts were invited to share knowledge on road disaster risk assessment in Japan.
John Kobina Richardson, a Senior Transport Specialist with the World Bank Group, opened the event by expressing hope that the collaboration among agencies would help the government advance road climate resilience in Mindanao and contribute to resilient logistics and food security.
During the training session, Mr.Masaki Yamamoto from the National Institute for Land and Infrastructure Management under Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT) in Japan shared expertise on road risk assessment and structural and non-structural measures. He explained MLIT draft guidelines on road vulnerability assessment, and the piloted methodology for assessing risk road segments.
Based on risk types and severities of the assessment results, resilience measures are classified into related types of traffic regulation considering the ease of functional recovery including speed limitations, lane closure/reduction and weight limitation. He also shared the latest information on digital transformation in the road sector in Japan, including the road data platform (xROAD) master plan. xROAD allows public access to road data to facilitate private-sector innovation for road operation and maintenance. The platform will also include vulnerability assessment results.
Attendees also heard from Mr.Takeshi Kuwano of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), who introduced JICA’s “Road Disaster Prevention and other Countermeasures on Mountainous Roads,” a technical cooperation project to enhance capacity for road resilience to landslides and rock collapse in the Philippines.
GFDRR has promoted resilient infrastructure through knowledge and tools. Frederico Pedroso, Disaster Risk Management Specialist, shared global practices of road vulnerability assessment and engineering design to pursue resilient infrastructure management. The outline of the GFDRR Japan program was also introduced by the Tokyo DRM Hub with good practices of technical assistance to road resilience in collaboration with Japanese expertise.
Overall, the event produced fruitful discussions toward enhancing road network resilience using multi-hazard risk assessment. DPWH delegate, Engr. Bryna Nolleth Lazaro, said, “DPWH can prioritize vulnerable road sections for resilience intervention by piloting road risk assessment. Japanese expertise has really cascaded the effect from the top to the bottom for road resilience. “
The World Bank together with the GFDRR Japan Program will continue to support the Government of the Philippines as they work to improve road network connectivity and resilience against multi-hazard risks in Mindanao, and the country as a whole.
