Pusaka koupu-upuan logta lawod bangsa Molbog , Philippines
Pusaka koupu-upuan logta lawod bangsa Molbog is an ICCA covering 365 km2 of tropical forests, mangroves, and coral reefs in the Balabac municipality of the Philippines. It is governed by the Molbog indigenous people, who conserve and utilise natural resources in the ICCA for subsistence, cultural and commercial purposes. The ICCA includes an area that is permanently closed to resource extraction, in addition sacred terrestrial and marine areas that are used by the community for traditional rituals.
The Molbog community’s management of their territory is motivated in equal parts by concern for the preservation of their culture and traditions, maintaining their territorial security, and biodiversity conservation. This biodiversity is significant: the municipality of Balabac, situated in the southernmost part of the Palawan, is one of the country’s Key Biodiversity Areas (an Important Bird and Biodiversity Area). It is the only confirmed habitat of the highly endangered mouse-deer locally known as pilandok (Tragulus napu). A number of mammals endemic to Palawan can also be found here, including the vulnerable Palawan flying fox (Acerodon leucotis) and the Palawan tree shrew (Tupaia palawanensis).
The municipality is located within the Palawan Endemic Bird Area, known for a number of threatened and restricted-range species. Of these species, several have been observed in the Balabac area, including the critically endangered Philippine cockatoo (Cacatua haematuropygia), Mantanani scops-owl (Otus mantananensis) and vulnerable Grey imperial pigeon (Ducula pickeringii). Balabac is also a priority area in the Sulu-Sulawesi Marine Ecoregion (SSME) conservation plan due to its high marine biodiversity and its role as a marine corridor.
In recent decades, the ICCA has gone through a process of self-strengthening and has gained greater recognition. On 15th July 1996, thirty Molbog elders representing the Barangays of Melville, Rabor, Pasig and Agutayan, in cooperation with the Philippine Association for Intercultural Development (PAFID), formally organized the Molbog Indigenous Cultural Community Association Incorporated (MICCAI). This associated was established to replace and strengthen the Molbog Association formed in 1992. These actions paved the way for the registration of the MICCAI as a legitimate indigenous community organization in the Philippines.
On 10th October 1996, the MICCAI gained its legal personality under the country’s Security and Exchange Commission. The first president of the MICCAI was Mr. Sanol Casim. In August 2018, the formal process of applying for the status of a Philippine ICCA was instigated. The Balabac ICCA was declared on 11th April 2019 in Barangay Melville, Balabac, Palawan. Having obtained formal recognition of their ICCA-status at the national level, the community chose to provide information to the international ICCA Registry.
Despite these positive developments, the ICCA still faces threats. Notable challenges are the presence of overlapping protected areas, unsustainable extraction of resources, and the loss of traditional knowledge. Climate change is a significant threat: sea level rise has negatively affected land set aside for agriculture, and the area has seen an increase in extreme weather events. In order to survive, the ICCA is in need of political, cultural and social empowerment, financial assistance, and collaborative capacity-building.
This case study was added to the ICCA Registry on 6th July 2019. The ICCA has been included in the ICCA Registry following a peer-review process facilitated by the Philippine ICCA Consortium (BUKLURAN).
Species statuses are based upon www.iucnredlist.org, accessed 6th July 2019.