Institutionalising Indigenous Food Systems of the Sierra Madre Biodiversity Corridor and the North Philippine Sea Bioregion

Overview

The project site, Aurora Province, is located at the centre of both the Sierra Madre Biodiversity Corridor SMBC and the North Philippine Sea (NPS), one of six marine Philippine Marine Bioregions. The remarkable biodiversity heritage of Aurora Province is primarily nurtured by disconnected and marginally developed groups of Indigenous Peoples (IPs) who form the SAMANAPO IP Alliance in areas known as Ancestral Domains by four indigenous communities. The IP communities rely on natural resources for nourishment through fishing, farming and gathering of marine and non-timber forest products. Due to seasonal typhoons and related depletion in fish catch, the communities face food security issues. This leads to high number of stunting and wasting cases among children in the province, particularly in coastal communities, attributed to the lack of protein in their diet. A seven-day maternal diet assessment of coastal mothers in the province also indicated that protein intakes are only 20% of international/national maternal recommendations.
Facing these issues, the project aims to address biodiversity depletion as well as chronic and acute maternal malnutrition in the Indigenous communities, so as to enable mothers to take leadership in advancing sustainable and healthy food systems and healthy ecosystems, thereby helping ensure food security. A key strategy is the establishment and management of maternal food reserves in both marine and terrestrial ecosystems within the Ancestral Domains of the Indigenous community. This will innovate year-round maternal nutrition planning in the SAMANAPO settlements. In addition, a Ridge to Reef approach for biodiversity conservation and restoration will provide mothers with either exclusive or preferential access to fishing/hunting zones where harvest is intended for family consumption and specifically focused on maternal needs.