Covering Just Transition in the Philippines: Challenges and Ways Forward

Just Transition roundtable

The Philippine government has committed to taking steps toward climate action by raising its carbon emission reduction target to 75% by 2030. The Marcos administration has pushed for the transition to renewable energy, vowing to prioritize the country’s shift to clean energy as its top climate agenda.

To discuss key issues, Climate Tracker, supported by Friedrich Ebert Stiftung held a Just Transition Roundtable Discussion last September 28, 2022. The event, which was attended by over 20 delegates was comprised of journalists and representatives from the labor, power, and research sectors, and non-profit organizations.

What is Just Transition?

Just transition in the Philippines began as a labor movement in the 1970s, which later expanded to include climate agendas. There have been significant developments at the legislative level through the enactment of the Philippines Electric Power Industry Reform Act of 2001 (EPIRA), the Renewable Energy Act, and the Green Jobs Act in 2016. The laws were enacted to promote sustainable growth in the energy sector and to incentivize businesses in green job generation to address the challenges of living in a changing climate.

Today, the urgency of just transition is becoming more evident with the increasingly adverse impacts brought by the climate emergency. Stakeholders and concerned citizens are campaigning for a just transition that prepares beyond the transition’s impact on the economy, but also extends a careful outlook on how it would affect all sectors of society.

Just transition, as defined by various stakeholders, is an inclusive transition in line with the interest of the people and the planet. It means creating cooperatives for workers, women’s participation in policymaking, and creating a regenerative economy inclusive for all. And since just transition permeates every sector, the genuine investment and active participation of the government is fundamental to achieving it.

Currently, the Philippines is a signatory to the Paris Agreement in 2015 which takes into account the creation of decent work and quality jobs in accordance with nationally defined development priorities. However, despite being a signatory, there has been no detailed implementation of the laws in the country, nor is there a rigorous study that measures the country’s movement in terms of just transition.

There are still a lot of questions and uncertainties in attempting to detail just the transition in the Philippines. Sectors do agree that going forward without leaving anybody or anything behind is the only “fair” change.

Where are we in Just Transition? Experiences Per Sector

“The government didn’t do just transition. They only changed the vehicles for modernization. It was only transition, and until now we’re calling for a genuine shift in our transportation industry,” – Jaime Aguilar, National Confederation of Transportworkers Unions (NCTU)

The jeepney modernization program was launched by the Department of Transportation in 2017 to make the country’s public transportation system efficient and environmentally friendly by 2020. Since then the issue of just transition has been a vast discussion, especially in the transportation sector. And while jeepney modernization is slowly being accepted in Filipino society, with the rise of e-jeeps and solar-powered public transportation in the past five years– the modernization was merely the transitioning of old to new vehicles. Workers in the transportation sector claim that they have not experienced just transition and continue to urge the government to establish service contracting which would not only help workers in their sector but also regulate prices for their passengers.

Transportation workers also call to harness solar energy in powering vehicles. They say relying on solar power is more viable and sustainable with the rising fuel prices. Workers continue to call for the improvement of the e-jeep industry and advocate extending the use of electricity with tricycle operations. They challenge the government for a genuine just transition plan with a commitment to improving workers’ livelihood.

“There is no just transition happening, therefore there is no disruption that we can talk about. We only have concepts and industry labeling, but communities lack social dialogue when it comes to discussing just transition,” Wilson Fortaleza, Partido Manggagawa

There has been a shift or preference for renewable energy as proven by the growing competition at the ground level. However, stakeholders think that there is still a lack of an integrative approach in contextualizing the need to shift to renewable energy. There is a misconception that renewable energy is automatically considered a “just transition”, when the shift may negatively impact communities and only benefit private investors.

While the Department of Energy is showing commitment to reducing carbon emissions, the lack of an interconnected approach between various government departments is preventing the implementation of a just transition in all aspects. It’s also inevitable to talk about just transition in the energy sector without talking about who controls the power industry. Advocates campaign for decentralized energy systems and shifting the control from corporations to the people.

“In the urban poor sector, we don’t even hear about the transition. They do not consider transition in the urban poor, and the problem with private driven socialized housing still persists,” – Bubuy Magahis, Kilos Maralita

While there may have been minimal movement in the labor and energy sector, urban poor communities that are mostly comprised of workers in informal settlements say they have not experienced any transition at all.

Housing is primarily privatized and socialized housing is passed on to private developers. Because housing is privatized, relocation prioritizes profit over people, displacing people from their livelihoods and putting them more at risk of climate disasters. The urban poor sector demands their participation in policy-making, especially in terms of crafting the people’s plan for housing programs.

“There was one who needed a nebulizer, and when she uses it their electricity bill increases by Php 100 – 200. They can’t afford to pay that much for electricity. Some haven’t held more than Php 5,000, so access in rural areas is limited even if there is demand. Women have to suppress this need because they are the ones who budget money,” – Maitet Diokno-Pascual, Center for Power Issues and Initiatives

Energy poverty is commonly experienced by women in rural communities, where a lot of the demand for energy and stable electricity is suppressed due to a lack of finances. Because of poverty in rural areas, the need for power and energy is compromised. A case study discussed found that in island communities in the Philippines, 40 barangays used less than 100 kilowatts per hour per month, this is because households can only afford to consume energy for lightbulbs. However, there is energy demand for rural households, especially for farming and fishing production, and even health. There is a lot of electricity need in homes that do not get addressed because people’s pockets are not sufficient, and women, traditionally assigned as caretakers of households bear the brunt of budgeting for their families’ needs.

“There aren’t enough stories on climate stories, and they are limited to certain journalists unless you know where to look. There is less demand for climate stories, and much of these stories are only published when journalists are supported by their editors or if there are spaces for these stories in the newsrooms.” – Biena Magbitang, Asia Director, Climate Tracker

Through Climate Tracker, journalists are supported to write on Just Transition to mainstream key issues and popularize the campaign of Just Transition. While stories aligned with the issue have been produced, journalists find it difficult to access data from government agencies. Aside from the lack of data, since transition programs are mostly under private companies, there is limited access to field reporting. The struggle to report just transition stories is also not exclusive to the topic, as it’s an issue of funding and newsroom priorities.

Moving Forward: Collaborations

While there is literature that discusses just transition at the legislative level, the Philippines is still lagging behind the actual implementation of just transition. At present, there is no decommissioning plan for existing coal plants, and the moratorium to close down coal plants isn’t followed. Laws may have been in place but energy democracy is still a far cry. Just transition and climate financing have also been coopted by neoliberal banks and development agencies.

Communities are still at a loss with the concept of just transition because there’s little community dialogue spearheaded by government programs. In addition, communities that can afford to just transition are limited to malls and universities with financing opportunities. For marginalized communities like the urban poor, a transition is nearly impossible due to the lack of financing.

Much of the access to just transition programs is still a question of money, and government support is fundamental for the actual implementation of programs. As shared by stakeholders, much is handed down to the private sector and just transition in the Philippines is still a foreign concept for the average Filipino.

Despite this, stakeholders will continue to campaign in mainstreaming just transition through collaborations with journalists and opinion makers. The just transition roundtable fostered the opportunity to discuss key issues with stakeholders and facilitated a dialogue between sectors and journalists on how to better highlight issues per sector and creatively communicate just transition until it is widely understood by the general public.