Disaster risk reduction experts and advocates underscored the need to create a National Evacuation Center Investment Program (NECIP) under the 2021 national budget that will prioritize the establishment of permanent evacuation centers in areas that are highly vulnerable to natural hazards.

The University of the Philippines Resilience Institute (UPRI) and Agap Banta noted how typhoons Quinta, Rolly, and Ulysses exposed the country's unsafe evacuations amid the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

The series of cyclones displaced around 545,000 families in eight regions. Some barangay halls used as alternative evacuation centers have been flooded or damaged.

UPRI and Agap Banta said not all local government units (LGUs) have permanent evacuation centers that follow safety and design specifications set by the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH).

"Most LGUs relied on school buildings, municipal/barangay halls, gyms, multi-purpose halls, and churches as alternative evacuation centers. These are not entirely fit to ensure the safety of evacuees, especially at this time when we have to enforce physical distancing and minimum health standards to curb the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic," they said.

They pointed out that out of the 270 municipalities belonging to the vulnerable provinces identified by the Climate Change Adaptation and Disaster Risk Reduction Cabinet Cluster, 182 municipalities (67 percent) do not have a permanent evacuation center. Of these municipalities, 96 LGUs are 4th to 6th income class.

"We reiterate our call to congressional leaders to fund a National Evacuation Center Investment Program (NECIP) starting with the 2021 budget, which will target highly vulnerable LGUs affected by the typhoons," UPRI and Agap Banta said.

They proposed that the budget should be governed by guidelines to include audit, standards, validation, construction, and/or upgrading of evacuation centers, given the intersecting challenges with COVID-19.

A hazard assessment of the areas where the evacuation centers are located must also be conducted.

They also recommended that sources of funding can come from the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Fund (NDRRMF), Local Government Support Fund (Allocation to Local Government Units), or DPWH Local Infrastructure Program.

"Since July this year, we have been highlighting the need for better and sufficient evacuation centers as a critical aspect of disaster preparedness," Agap Banta team leader Krish Enriquez-Gascon said.

Agap Banta estimates that an allocation of at least P3 billion for the next three years can help build around 120 permanent evacuation centers in highly vulnerable LGUs, which can accommodate about 13,500 families or 67,500 displaced individuals.

With this funding, other structures used for evacuation may also be retrofitted, it said.

They also recommended localized hazard assessments that will factor in multiple hazards, especially extreme weather events and changes in rainfall patterns brought about by a changing climate.

UPRI Director for Research and Creative Work Dr. Kristoffer Berse said the institute has been advocating for a review of the location of evacuation centers nationwide to take into account the impacts of climate change and the cascading effects of multiple hazards, including epidemics.

UPRI and Agap Banta believe that it is not too late to invest in preparedness as the Philippine government can still act to pivot toward better preparedness.