Welcome
from the PSDN Conference Organizing Team
Welcome to
Manila and to CASM’s Asia-Pacific Learning Event!
We are pleased to welcome as cosponsors of this
conference The Australian National University (ANU); the
Communities and Small-Scale Mining (CASM) network; and the
United Nations Development Program; the Local Government
of Itogon Municipality, Benguet Province; the Asian
Institute of Management Conference Center Manila; and the
Department of Environment and Natural Resources.
The theme of the conference is “Community and State
Interests in Small-Scale Mining: Sharing Experiences from the
Asia-Pacific Region.” We
have developed an exciting program involving the various
stakeholders presenting their views and issues around this
theme. Participants
come from the Philippines, Australia, Indonesia, Japan, Denmark,
United Kingdom, Mongolia, India, Papua New Guinea, Cambodia, and
Venezuela. We have representatives from government, NGOs, academe,
industry, and communities.
We have
organized a fieldtrip to visit small-scale mining communities in
Itogon Municipality which is located in the mountains of the
Cordillera north of Manila from June 10-12, Friday to Sunday.
The Local Government Unit of Itogon has prepared a
program of activities that will be educational and entertaining.
This field trip will include popular tourist destinations
in Baguio City which is known as the summer capital of the
Philippines.
We have booked
you at the Asian Institute of Management Conference Center
Manila. AIM is
within walking distance to major shopping centers with many fine
stores and restaurants.
All our
colleagues in the Philippines Sustainable Network (PSDN) join us
in welcoming you to Manila.
We are pleased to serve as the host organization for this
conference. If you have any questions during your stay, please do not hesitate to
approach anyone of our organizing team. They will be glad to
assist you with directions or information. They have identifying yellow name tags.
We want to
thank all our colleagues who served on the conference committee.
We are especially thankful for the strong support from
Amy Lecciones and her team from PSDN, to Mayor Mario Godio and
the Local Government Unit of Itogon Municipality, Colin Filer
and his team from The Australian National University, Jeffrey
Davidson and his team from the World Bank/CASM Secretariat, and
to Erwiza Erman and Trevor Neale as coordinators of the
Indonesian and Papua New Guinea delegations respectively.
The team members’ names are printed in this program.
Without their help, this meeting would not have happened.
We look
forward to seeing all of you at the cocktail reception hosted by
PSDN on Tuesday evening. We
hope that you enjoy yourself throughout the meeting and find the
sessions stimulating. Once
again, on behalf of PSDN, ANU, CASM, and UNDP, welcome to
Manila.
Evelyn J. Caballero |
Ben S. Malayang III |
Conference Organizing Manager |
President,
Philippine Sustainable Development Network Foundation,
Inc. |
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Key Note Speech
Ignacio, Demetrio L.
The
Department of Environment and Natural Resources and the Mines
and Geosciences Bureau (DENR-MGB) warmly welcome the
participants and guests of the Learning Event on “Community
and State Interests in Small-Scale Mining: Sharing Experiences from the Asia-Pacific Region” and
its organizers, the Philippine Sustainable Development Network
Foundation (PSDN), Australian State University (ANU), and the
Communities and Small-Scale Mining (CASM) network.
We
are beset by numerous problems facing the small-scale mining
industry, that an occasion such as this is timely because this
can be a vehicle to review the situation at hand, express to our
national government sound recommendations to fill in the gaps
created by ineffective policies, and at the same time, address
the environmental, safety and health and social sciences
regarding the industry.
The
economic extravaganza ushered in by industry has created a
growth of local mining communities, employment opportunities,
other business and livelihood activities of such communities
where a mining activity exists. These positive contributions are somehow overshadowed by
a chorus of persistent and yet, unfounded mining issues and
concerns that threaten the very foundation of small scale mining
as a reliable income generating activity, especially in the
rural sector.
On
16 January 2004, President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo-issued
Executive Order No. 270 entitled “National Policy Agenda on
Revitializing Mining in the Philippines” as amended by Executive Order No. 270-A dated 20 April 2004.
The Order provided twelve (12) guiding principles and
specifically mentioned that “small-scale mining shall be
promoted as a formal sector of the minerals industry and as part
of the development initiative for both downstream and upstream
industries”. In
spite of the significant contributions of small-scale mining,
Government recognizes the its operation in the present context,
with the exception of the traditional small-scale mining like
panning and sluicing, is unsustainable. It is an activity with significant impact to human health
and safety to the environment.
This
learning activity could provide a forum for participants from
here in our country and other
countries in the Asia-Pacific region to share knowledge and
experiences between the
interests of different stakeholders in the artisanal and
small-scale mining sector, and to
the specific interests coming from local communities and the
government as well.
So
it is in this light that this representation wishes one and all
to actively participate and grasp whatever learning that this
conference has to offer and use it wisely once you come back to
your own fields of expertise.
For
a better and well-managed small-scale mining industry!
The
Keynote Speaker
Undersecretary for Policy and Planning
Research and Legislative Affairs
Department of Environment and Natural Resources
Visayas Avenue, Diliman, Quezon City
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