Philippine E-Journals

Gender analysis of livelihoods, capabilities and shocks in a marine protected area (MPA) of Catanduanes island in Luzon, Philippines

Minerva I. Morales | Jimmy T. Masagca | Socorro T. Brillante | Perla A. Tolentino | Aurora E. Araojo | Estrella T. Tribiana | Victoriano A. Prolles | Sonia R. Vargas

Discipline: Natural Sciences

 

Abstract:

The political ecology and social representations perspectives were used to understand gender, equity and poverty issues by using Worldfish Centre’s matrix and tools for analyzing livelihoods, assets, capabilities and shocks (LACAS) in a marine protected area (MPA) in Luzon, Philippines. We note that, extreme weather disturbances, government’s inability to address the real needs and landlessness (or lack of adequate space for farming for diversified livelihoods) are the main reasons why poverty is still unsolved in the study area within the 3km radius of the MPA under study. Several pro-poor programs have been implemented but there were conflicts that evolved from the divergent perceptions and with the use of top-bottom and bottom-up approaches in the MPA governance. After many years of the most highly likely diminished co-participation in governance, the people’s organization (PO) for mangroves was re-organized and now at the forefront of maintaining the vibrancy of co-managing the said MPA with the local barangay council headed by a woman barangay captain and more women members of the mangrove association are involved with the “genderized” membership rule. A woman-led market-based approach in a different context to govern MPA adding to the two-other approaches is presented here with the intervening institution of the Gender and Development (GAD) center of the Catanduanes State College (CSC) in the typhoon-prone island east of the Philippine archipelago.