Livelihood Vulnerability of Agricultural Communities to Climate Change in Selected Barangays in Brooke’s Point, Palawan, Philippines

Abstract

 Although climate change is a global issue, its impacts vary between countries, regions, communities and sectors. Due to their limited capacity to adapt to the changing climate and access to other forms of production, agrarian communities in developing nations suffer the most. This study assessed the vulnerability of agriculture-based households in three Barangays situated within the Mambalot-Filantropia Watershed in Brooke’s Point, Palawan, Philippines. Through a comprehensive evaluation of socioeconomic and biophysical aspects, the study determined vulnerability levels and identified key influencing factors. A survey encompassing of 300 households and secondary data collection from relevant government sources formed the basis of the analysis. Analysis of the data following the Livelihood Vulnerability Index indicated moderate vulnerability across all three barangays, with Mambalot showing the highest LVI score (0.311), followed by Ipilan (0.276) and Maasin (0.260). Conversely, in the LVI-PCC assessment of which examines the interaction among exposure, sensitivity, and adaptive capacity, Ipilan showed the highest overall vulnerability (0.004), followed by Mambalot (-0.004) and Maasin (-0.008). Food vulnerability, social networks, and exposure to climate variability were identified as primary concerns, underscoring the need to prioritize climate change mitigation efforts in these areas. Study findings suggest the need for urgent interventions in such as crop and livelihood diversification, microfinance, community-government partnerships, and disaster risk reduction.

Key words: climate change, vulnerability, livelihoods, agriculture, Philippines