A rapid appraisal of community-driven development in Post-Haiyan Philippines

More than seven years have passed after the onslaught of super typhoon Haiyan in November 2013 in the Philippines. This study provides a rapid appraisal in the implementation of the Kapit-bisig Laban sa Kahirapan-Comprehensive and Integrated Delivery of Social Services (Kalahi-CIDSS) program of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) in Haiyan-affected communities. Kalahi-CIDSS was anchored on community-driven development approach, an alternative approach from traditional top-down approach in program implementation. We collected secondary data from official reports from 2014-2018 and used a joint framework of participation, transparency and accountability in analyzing them. We unpacked five major themes surrounding the Kalahi-CIDSS program: 1) community-driven development as a response to disasters, 2) accelerated community empowerment activity cycle, 3) grievance redress system, 4) environmental and social sustainability safeguards and 5) impact of community-driven development. We argue that community-driven development potentially offers an alternative response to post-disaster early recovery and rehabilitation where people are treated not merely as beneficiaries of aid but as partners in development. We end by noting that this rapid appraisal is not a one-stop, sweeping analysis of the operation and implementation of the Kalahi-CIDSS program but an attempt to supply a short analysis of the program's promises as post-disaster response. We encourage researchers and scholars to unravel the program's issues and challenges to build a better perspective and analysis in applying a community-driven development approach in post-disaster development and humanitarian responses.