House Minority Leader 4Ps Party-list Rep. Marcelino “Nonoy” Libanan highlighted on Sunday, Feb. 22 the availability of P39.8 billion in fresh funding for the country’s disaster-response and rehabilitation efforts.

“Congress allocated P39.8 billion for this year’s Calamity Fund—a 90 percent increase from the P21 billion set aside in 2025,” Libanan said in a statement. 

He made this revelation even as three of the country’s volcanoes – Mayon, Taal, and Kanlaon – were all exhibiting unrest or ongoing eruptions.

Libanan broke down the P39.8-billion Calamity Fund under the 2026 General Appropriations Act (GAA) as follows:

•P15.3 billion for the Disaster Rehabilitation and Reconstruction Assistance Program for Local Government Units (LGUs);

•P12.5 billion in capital outlays for repair and reconstruction of permanent structures, including pre-disaster operations, rehabilitation, and related activities;

•P11 billion in aid, relief, and rehabilitation services to communities affected by calamities, including personnel training and other pre-disaster measures; and

•P1 billion in adaptation projects and activities for local governments and community organizations under the People’s Survival Fund.

“The disaster-response funds cover natural and human-induced calamities, epidemics as declared by the Department of Health (DOH), crises from armed conflicts, insurgency, terrorism, and other catastrophes,” said the minority leader.

Libanan’s announcement coincides with reports from the Region 11 Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (DRRMC), which on Feb. 21 confirmed that at least seven people were killed in Mati City, Davao Oriental, and Monkayo, Davao de Oro due to flooding and landslides triggered by heavy rains.

A total of 84,208 individuals across 65 barangays in the Davao region were affected by prolonged rainfall caused by a shear line, a boundary in the atmosphere where winds moving in different directions converge, often leading to unsettled weather.

Earlier this month, tropical storm Basyang caused flash floods and landslides, killing at least 12 people and affecting 232,550 residents across 517 barangays in Mindanao and the Visayas.

The 2025 World Risk Report ranked the Philippines No. 1 out of 193 countries for the fourth consecutive year, due largely to its exposure to natural hazards such as typhoons, flooding, sea-level rise, droughts, earthquakes, tsunamis, and volcanic eruptions.

The Philippines sits along the western Pacific typhoon corridor where nearly one-third of the world’s most powerful tropical cyclones develop.

The country also straddles the Pacific Ring of Fire, known for frequent earthquakes and volcanic activity.