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Asian Journal of Agriculture and Development (AJAD) - Call for papers!

Stakeholder Analysis for the Ccoastal Zone Management (CZM) of Barangay Hugom, San Juan, Batangas

(Philippines), Master of Science in Environmental Science (University of the Philippines Los Baños)

Abstract:

 

Barangay Hugom in San Juan, Batangas is a small coastal community devoted to fishing, farming, and tourism. It is also the object of various nongovernment organizations’ (NGOs) environmental awareness and conservation interventions. The diverse stakeholders to the coastal zone resources and their respective interests undeniably give rise to conflict. In the context of coastal zone management (CZM), it is crucial that the different stakeholders’ interests are analyzed for their power relations so that resource managers and resource users can effectively situate themselves to successfully address the different conflicts and issues confronting the stakeholders.

The general objective of the study was to describe and analyze the power relations among different stakeholders to the CZM of Barangay Hugom, San Juan, Batangas. Specifically, this study aimed to 1) describe the biophysical and social environments of the coastal zone, 2) identify and describe the key stakeholders to the CZM, and 3) analyze resource use patterns and power relations among the key stakeholders. The study employed a multiple method design, which explored the complexity of stakeholders—roles, interests, and power relations—in the context of CZM. Qualitative research methods and participatory techniques to stakeholder analysis were used.

The description of the biophysical and social environment provided the context for the stakeholders’ activities and social relations. An understanding of this context led to the identification of stakeholders and a description of their interests and network of relations. This study defined stakeholders for CZM as any individual or group who can significantly affect or is affected by the decision-making activities in the CZM of the barangay. The stakeholders were classified as primary or those directly affected and secondary or those who facilitate in the CZM. The primary stakeholders were tourism business operators, concerned landowners, and people’s organizations consisting of fishermen, farmers, and mountaineering guides. The secondary stakeholders were the nongovernment organizations comprised of Hayuma and the University of the Philippines Mountaineers (UPM), and several local government units.

In the analysis of power relations, this study conceptualized CZM power issues to promote the interests of stakeholders. The power issues were the following: (1) inequity in the distribution of benefits from and responsibilities for conserving the marine sanctuary, (2) competition among fishermen, (3) conflict over uses of the beach due to the absence of zoning and land use regulations, (4) conflict over use of rights to private properties, (5) agroecotourism development versus waste management, and (6) farming and road construction versus siltation and reef degradation.

The study operationalized a definition and categorization of stakeholders by examining stakeholder power relations and by providing the impetus for stakeholder collaboration. It also demonstrated the merits of using multiple methods and participatory techniques to stakeholder analysis. Finally, the study can be used to facilitate collaboration for CZM through the analysis of power relations.