3. To maintain the sustainability of the natural resources in an environmentally sound manner. 4. To enhance and promote mitigating and adaptation measures in response to climate change and global warming. 5. To strengthen and enhance an open and full participatory process in the development of various types of natural resources master plans and in the implementation of innovative natural resource management approaches and measures.
Strategies 1. Promote stable livelihood, increase income and decent working conditions for all those forest settlers engaged in utilizing forest resources for trees, crops and livestock production and eco-tourism development. 2. Adapt a customized and regional-based sustainable management and utilization of natural resources to prevent destruction of unique biodiversity of the region. 3. Identify critical areas such as wildlife management areas and special conservation/buffer areas and formulate policies to protect them from incompatible land uses and development. 4. Identify potential areas in the watershed where there are sustainable resource use opportunities and formulate policies, plans and projects to promote activities such as flora and fauna viewing/collecting, wildlife hunting, landscape/mountainside viewing and recreational use. 5. Modify the present system of proclaiming watershed areas/forest reserves and develop an alternative legal/tenurial instrument for designating and protecting watershed resources.
Good Governance Good governance is the most important factor in eradicating poverty and in facilitating sustainable development in the specific provinces, cities, municipalities and in the region in general. Extensive reforms in the quest for better governance have been taking place in the region. Among these are reforms in financial management (collection of tax revenue), streamlining of budget preparation and release procedures, streamlining/rationalizing the focus, functions and structures of government agencies, streamlining of business process registration system, reforms in the agencies, directly involve in the pillars of justice (in the area of overall capacity, integrity, efficiency and accountability), adoption of anti-corruption plans and programs, reforms in the procurement process and participation of civil society organizations in the various processes of government functioning. However, despite conscious efforts to promote good governance, progress in most of the project interventions and implementation measures has been inadequate and hard to sustain. Many endeavours to advance and foster good governance have had narrow and limited impact because the underlying causes is not being address by the reforms/measures but only the symptoms or signs of bad governance. The devolution of powers to local governments and other sub-national units of government in the region has faced a series of challenges, thus it has not greatly contributed in deepening autonomy and self-reliance for the local governments. Many local governments still has limited experience and capacity to carry out new functions, deliver vital services and respond to the needs and requirements of the citizenry. Likewise, through election process, the project successes and benefits and lessons learned from previous decentralization efforts and interventions were dissipated and lost when new set of local government officials come to power. In this effort of institutionalizing good governance,
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Sectoral Objectives and Targets