PHILIPPINES An award for hydropower plants managed by indigenous communities in Luzon

A council of elders makes the most important decisions, while women and youth take care of the administrative part: this is how a local NGO in the Philippines promoted the right to self-determination of the Igorot people on the island of Luzon. The initiative was recognized by the Forum of Indigenous Peoples, which is held in Rome and whose participants were received today in audience by Pope Francis.

Rome () – Involving indigenous communities in the production of renewable energy: this is the project carried out by the non-profit organization Sibolng Agham at Teknolohiya (SIBAT) in the Philippines and which today received the People’s Forum award Indigenous, an international meeting promoted by the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD).

Pope Francis also, when receiving the Forum participants in audience, reiterated that “the contribution of indigenous peoples is essential in the fight against climate change.”

“We must listen more to indigenous peoples and learn from their way of life to fully understand that we cannot continue to depredate natural resources,” the pontiff continued: “If we really want to take care of our common home and improve the planet on which we live, they are profound changes in lifestyles and in models of production and consumption are essential”.

Ambitious but achievable objectives, as demonstrated by the project carried out by SIBAT, aimed at the Igorot people of the provinces of Abra, Apayao and Kalinga, in the Cordillera region, on the island of Luzon. The goal was to create community renewable energy systems related to microhydroelectricity, entities known by the acronym CBRES-MHP. A total of 1,684 households (8,420 indigenous) from areas not connected to the electrical grid of the Cordillera are benefiting from the project, which was developed over three years, from 2020 to 2022, and which uses CBRES-MHP to power 14 primary schools and health centers and other community facilities, including 11 rice mills, 2 corn mills and 4 sugarcane pressing mills.

Local indigenous peoples participated in a free and informed manner from the initial planning phases to the implementation of the project. Those responsible for the project are now women, men, youth and people with disabilities chosen by the community and trained by SIBAT to guarantee the maintenance and operation of the hydroelectric facilities.

Indigenous women and youth also participate in construction and administration activities, while the elderly and people with disabilities are part of a Council of Elders that makes the most important decisions and ensures respect for indigenous traditions.

The project allowed local populations to protect and preserve their rivers and waterfalls, but also to promote their identity and culture, asserting their right to self-determination.

The Indigenous Peoples Forum also awarded two other prizes to two development initiatives dedicated to strengthening food security, but financed by IFAD itself and implemented in Cameroon and Bolivia.