Risk-informed land use plan pushed

THE Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development (DHSUD) is targeting all local government units (LGUs) to have a risk-informed land use plan by 2028 with its new planning platform.

In a statement, the DHSUD, alongside the Department of Science and Technology (DoST) and the World Bank, launched a digital platform that helps LGUs prepare risk-informed land use and urban development plans.

The platform, called PlanSmart for Sustainable Human Settlements, collects, visualizes, and analyzes environmental, demographic, and hazard data to help LGUs ensure smarter and safer development.

The platform is a key component of housing agency’s PLANADO Program, which targets 100% of LGUs to have risk-informed comprehensive land use plans (CLUPs) by 2028.

“This app, which will systematically generate CLUPs using evidence-based information, will significantly help LGUs build communities that are more resilient, inclusive, and sustainable,” DHSUD Secretary Jose Ramon P. Aliling said.

DHSUD, DoST, and Department of Environment and Natural Resources also signed a data sharing agreement for better climate and disaster-resilient planning across LGUs.

“Through PlanSmart, it is my vision that we will have a geospatially-enabled Philippines where we evaluate data, time, and location together for better analysis and decision-making,” DoST Secretary Renato U. Solidum, Jr. said.

The platform is backed by the World Bank’s $500-million Disaster Risk Management and Climate Development Policy Loan with a Catastrophe Deferred Drawdown Option, which was approved in 2023.

“This is an important means of supporting a unified, inclusive, and forward-looking agenda that builds disaster and climate resilience for long-term sustainable development,” said Zafer Mustafaoğlu, World Bank Division director for the Philippines, Malaysia, Thailand, and Brunei. — Beatriz Marie D. Cruz