Ladies and gentlemen, good afternoon.

Please allow me first of all to congratulate this afternoon’s awardees. You exemplify global corporate citizenship and we thank you for your efforts towards sustainability and resilience.

At the recent UN General Assembly, there was widespread agreements among member states that we have fallen far behind of many of our SDG targets. There was frequent mention of the pandemic, and the race to net-zero, and the Secretary General and many others called for the reform on the global financial architecture to support those countries most in need, and those most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change, but those who actually support also are rich in natural capital such as forest, biodiversity, and minerals that are needed for our low-carbon future. The critical role of the private sector was underscored as a source of solutions and resources to bring us back on track.

We recognize today that private sector is indeed making important contributions for a shared economic, social, and environmental progress. The initiatives of the European Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines such as the Europa Awards strengthens stakeholders’ commitment to sustainable development and the publishing of the sustainability White Book embody these significant efforts.

The White Book, which tackles policy recommendations and sustainability solutions conforming with the SDGs and Philippine Development Plan can provide pathways for business in achieving an inclusive and resilient decarbonized future.

On the DENR’s part, we have adopted a multi-stakeholder risk-based systems approach to achieving our mandate. This means increasing and deepening strategic partnerships with academe and the private sector to accelerate evidence-informed decision-making, resource management and an axis to innovation to ensure implementation. We have also adopted a geo-strategic approach to planning and engagement with like-minded and rules-based partners especially in the areas of environmental protection, conservation, and adaptive and transformative governance of resource utilization.

Our commitments to the SDGs, to the Paris Agreement, to the Montreal-Kunming CBD Agreement, and the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction are top of mind in all that we do today. Our investments must have multiple gains that must result in a combination of environmental, social, and economic impacts to ensure that no community, and no ecosystem is left behind.

The ECCP’s efforts in Europa Awards are therefore most welcome. These are a timely and appropriate way of recognizing exceptional practices in core business strategies and operations that will in fact, de-risk our future.

The UN Framework for Business Engagement identify broad categories for private sector contributions towards the United Nations goals, namely: policy operations and value chains; social investments and philantrophic contributions; third, advocacy, policy dialogue and institutional frameworks. Governments have a critical role to play in establishing and the enabling environment for these through policies and programs.

Allow me to mention a few efforts we have accomplished, and continue to work on at the DENR in order to achieve our goals.

We have established a national natural resource geospatial database, and created the Geospatial Database Office within the Department. The national natural resource geospatial database serves as a platform for environmental governance, and the integrated planning and implementation of disaster risk reduction, and climate-proof strategies. The GDO or the Geospatial Database Office catalogues all our natural resources including land, forests, water, and minerals using satellite imagery, and other remote sensing and ground-based techniques to survey all that we have, and the natural and human-made challenges and changes within our islands. This database serves as a critical decision support tool to monitor compliance, and forest rules and regulations, and conduct research on the use of our natural capital.

We are especially grateful for the support of the EU towards our Philippine Space Agency, and the access it has given with the products of Copernicus. These assets enhance our ability to observe, monitor, analyze the environmental changes caused by both natural and human activities. These capabilities strongly support our natural capital accounting system as we move towards a green and blue economy. The enable-scenario based planning allowed specific risk horizons that provide opportunities for future thinking for development and national environmental security planning.

As we measure what we treasure in the country, we were able to realize the true value of our natural assets for climate and disaster risk resilience, and for sustainable development.

As you may be aware as mentioned previously, I represent the President in the Climate Change Commission with the support of our other country partners, our national government agencies are on the final stages of completing the Philippine National Adaptation Plan for 2023 to 2050. It includes a comprehensive strategy for risk-based adaptation in key sectors such as agriculture, fisheries, food security, water resources, health, ecosystems and biodiversity, cultural heritage, population displacement and migration, land use, human settlements, livelihoods, energy, transport and communications.

We see intersects in the ECCP’s mission in the NAP’s crucial components which include stakeholder engagement and access to best science and technology as well as innovative financing mechanisms to support adaptation efforts.

As you may know, the President has created the Water Resources Management Office under the DENR in April of this year. Water security underpins food and energy security, as well as public health and sanitation. Policy and investment coherence, and convergence in implementation for integrated water resource management are now possible. The DENR is working closely with the DOF, the Department of Finance, the Department of Public Works and Highways, and the National Irrigation Authority to provide universal access to safe water, make provisions for industry, and manage our flooding problem.

On mitigation, we are pursuing low-carbon development pathways guided by our Nationally Determined Contributions Implementation Plan. This plan provides a roadmap, policies, measures, and priority actions in five sectors, namely: energy, transport, agriculture, waste, and industry. The NDC plans include actions to be implemented in each sector with implementation overseen by four sector departments: the Department of Agriculture, Department of Energy, the DENR, and the Department of Transportation.

The DENR is supported of the Philippine Energy Plan and its transition to renewable energy by updating our permitting and policies and processes for offshore wind and floating solar projects while also including social and environmental protection, and safety measures on land based and marine habitats, and a just transition considerations guidelines a new administrative orders have been, and continue, to be issued to advance these efforts. We have an administrative order enhancing the environmental impact assessment now for the implementation of all offshore wind energy projects, and this will be issued very soon.

Our energy resources include critical minerals and we are in close coordination with the Department of Energy, with the NEDA, with the Department of Finance, the Department of Foreign Affairs, and the Department of National Defense in optimizing these valuable resources. We understand the role of green minerals as strategic components of our low-carbon future, and we are prioritizing mineral exploration, and support investments in value added mineral processing while advancing responsible and sustainable mining by strengthening compliance monitoring and enforcement.

Before I close, I would like to share with you that the NEDA Investment Coordinating Cabinet Committee has approved the green economy program for the Philippines where the European Union’s funding support of 60 million Euros has been extended.

We are grateful and ready to begin this new chapter in cooperation between the Philippines and the EU. We trust that the program will foster policies and programs towards sustainable consumption and production, and the circular economy that considers social inclusion as well, and we look forward to a contributing to the implementation of the Extended Producers Responsibility Act. We aim for it to directly address the problems of plastic pollution and marine litter while enabling investments and innovations in the waste management and recycling industry.

Climate change is a complex and systemic risk, and our President have said that all aspects of the economic agenda must now integrate this risk in all plans and policies. He has highlighted our forests, both green and blue, in building resilience to its impacts and ensuring there are pathways to inclusive and sustainable development.

The DENR considers climate, biodiversity, and human development to be inextricably linked. Our ecosystems underpin all development and well-being and nature-based solutions must be part of our arsenal. We encourage the ECCP to embrace environmental protection and community resilience beyond your fencelines and into your core business value cycles. Your power is cathalytic and will accelerate the achievement of the SDGs and just transitions towards green and blue economies.

These awards today and the White Book are laudable steps towards these directions. We hope to continue working with you on producing sustainable products and services, and generating income and responsive investments to support green growth. By investing in strategic ESG programs and resilience, you ensure not only good resilience but you will also be a business that delivers public good.

We look to the ECCP to continue being a valuable partner in achieving a more inclusive, resilient, and sustainable Philippines.

Thank you very much and mabuhay!