Mindanao Displacement Dashboard, July 2021
In July 2021, an estimated total number of 1,327 families (6,635 individuals) were displaced in Mindanao due to armed conflict (5,075 individuals) and crime and violence (1,560 individuals). Out of the 1,327 families displaced throughout the month, 18% (240 families) have returned to their places of origin by the end of July, leaving 82% (1,087 families or approximately 5,435 individuals) still displaced by the end of the reporting period. As of the 31st of July, an estimated total number of 25,355 families (approximately 124,576 individuals) are currently displaced in Mindanao.
Meanwhile, UNHCR conducted a project verification and QIP visit to the satellite facility of the Disaster Risk Reduction Office of Asuncion municipality in Davao del Norte Province on 15 July. Together with project partner ACCORD, UNHCR supported the construction of the satellite office, which was completed in 2020. The facility was erected to provide a quick and immediate response to emergencies, as well as improve communication in terms of disaster preparedness of five barangays (villages) in the municipality. Another QIP was turned over to the local government of San Luis, Agusan del Sur province during the reporting period. UNHCR and project partner ACCORD supported the renovation of a community health care facility as part of efforts to encourage social cohesion activities and contribute to the healthcare provision capacity of the local government.
UNHCR concluded its stakeholders’ consultation with its protection partners across Mindanao last 2 July 2021. It was attended by UNHCR implementing partners such as ACCORD, ACTED, CFSI, CHR, IRDT, MMI, and TKI. During the meeting, the implementing partners discussed the impact of UNHCR’s engagement in Mindanao and their strategic directions in the next three to five years. In the same vein, UNHCR shared its protection and solutions roadmap. The program partners also shared their views and sentiments on UNHCR’s disengagement in Mindanao, highlighting the significance of UNHCR’s presence in mainstreaming protection for the IDPs in Mindanao, as well as its technical expertise in providing durable solutions for the displaced persons in Mindanao which must be imparted to the relevant stakeholders.
On 02 July 2021, UNHCR met with the Resident Coordinator (RC) and the Commission on Human Rights of the Philippines (CHRP) to discuss updates, challenges, and prospects of the IDP Bill both at the national and the regional (BARMM) level. The RC highlighted the role of the UN in pushing for this bill, as well as the bill’s potential impact as leverage in soliciting international support for the Philippines during emergencies. CHRP shared their experience in advocating for an IDP Protection bill in the national legislature, recalling the experience in pushing for the IDP Bill under the administration of former President Benigno Aquino III, who vetoed the bill passed by both houses of Congress in 2013, and sharing the steps they took to rectify in the latest version and avoid the provisions that served as grounds for the former President’s veto. UNHCR likewise presented updates on its advocacy initiatives in the BARMM on the IDP Bill.
For more information, please download the July Displacement Dashboard.
