The Plight of Informal Settlers in the Coastal Areas of Panabo City: A Basis for Intervention

International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science (IJRISS) | Volume V, Issue VII, July 2021 | ISSN 2454–6186

The Plight of Informal Settlers in the Coastal Areas of Panabo City: A Basis for Intervention

Anthony John O. Montiel¹, Sherry Jean B. Capuyan², Jefferson H. Silverio³, Melcris J. Olayer⁴, Shynar P. Abiera⁵, Ronel G. Dagohoy^6
1–⁵Student, Bachelor of Public Administration, Davao del Norte State College
⁶Program Chairperson, Bachelor of Public Administration at Institute of Leadership, Entrepreneurship and Good Governance, Davao del Norte State College

Abstract – As urban areas flourished, informal settlements doubled their numbers in slew. Its manifestation is the influx of urban poor living in environmentally risky parts of the city, such as coastal areas. Aside from having a compromised settlement, their vulnerability to different hazards was prevalent. This study unfolds the plight of the informal settlers in coastal areas of the barangays Cagangohan, J.P. Laurel, and San Pedro of Panabo City; and their coping mechanisms used in dealing with the challenges in their everyday life. This inquiry used the qualitative case study research method to describe, elicit discussion, and analyze a particular situation. This has been understood through in-depth interviews with the informal settlers living along the coastal area for at least one year; and series of analyses made by the researchers. Through the data gathered, there were six (6) emerging themes extracted. These themes were the living condition predicaments, environmental health risks, struggles in family and livelihood instability, practicality and resiliency, resources utilization, and emergency tactics. This study proposes a basis for the understanding of the life experiences of informal settlers and formulation of various interventions in response to the problems, and upgrading projects for the betterment of the informal settlers; that will be undertaken in the future.

Keywords – Coastal Areas, Informal Settlers, Living Condition, Case Study, Philippines

I. INTRODUCTION

1.1. Rationale

The risk of living through the daily needs to survive is now getting worse in every part of this world, especially in coastal areas in the Philippines. The spread of informal settlements has become a phenomenon associated with big cities and expanding urban centers in the Philippines. Informal settlers living in dangerous areas like riverbanks and shorelines are part of the estimated number of informal settlers in the country that varies, ranging from as low as 470,000 families to as high as 2.5 million families from the early 1970s to more recent years due to rapidly urbanized cities [1]. It is defined that informal settlers are also called/known by squatter settlement that depends on their country residing in. They are commonly residing in the urban settings; they classified informal settlers as very poor, no access to lands that they can call their own can define a residential area that has developed without legal claims to the land and without permission from the person authorized to build and in their

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