Name: The Philippines keeps flooding despite billions spent to protect it
Uploaded: 2025-10-28T02:57:20.227Z
Duration: 5 min 21 s
Description: Officials have spent billions on flood control projects in the Philippines, but annual flooding persists. Climate change and politics are leaving millions of residents vulnerable to rising waters.

Officials have spent billions on flood control projects in the Philippines, but annual flooding persists. Climate change and politics are leaving millions of residents vulnerable to rising waters.

Manila

The Philippines has invested billions in flood protection measures, including levees, drainage tunnels, and pumping stations. However, the country continues to face annual flooding that displaces millions. Experts point to climate change, deforestation, and rapid urbanization as exacerbating factors, but highlight that corruption and poor coordination among over 30 government agencies are the main barriers to effective flood management.

Investigations have revealed incomplete projects and misallocated funds, fueling public anger and large-scale protests. While some local groups are taking action by mapping flood risks and restoring natural barriers, scientists warn that without greater political accountability and streamlined governance, the impacts of flooding will persist. The situation in the Philippines is seen as a warning for other nations facing similar climate challenges.

The Philippines keeps flooding despite billions spent to protect it

The Philippines has spent billions trying to stop this. Levees, drainage tunnels, pumping stations. And yet every year streets turn into rivers, homes go under, millions of people are displaced. The Philippines sits in the path of a dozen tropical storms every year. But climate change, deforestation and rapid urbanization are supercharging the country's long fight with flooding. But what's keeping this problem unsolved isn't as obvious as it looks. On paper, the science to reduce flooding is solid. Planned pumping stations, retention basins, river upgrades could all cut peak flood levels and drain low-lying districts far faster following major storms. The Philippines has some of the most advanced hazard mapping in the region. So if the science is sound, and by the government's own account, the money's there, what's the problem? I think the corruption happens in many forms. Dr. Leonora Onkeles' family lives in Bulacan, a catch basin for Manila's floodwaters. Her region floods almost every year despite decades of government flood plans and billions spent. In some cases, it's not just because of government officials themselves, you know, getting things under the table. But land developers, contractors are really bribing, you know, government officials so that they will get the contracts. So the flooding is also about politics. Billions set aside for flood protection that never reached the ground. What's left is exhaustion and the anger of seeing nothing change. Anger that has turned into large-scale protests. People turning out in the country's capital in historic numbers. Corruption is one issue, but governance is another. Even if you have a very good plan, if there's a lot of those issues involved, then you still won't be able to solve those flooding problems in the Philippines. Philomar Torrio is an engineer from the Philippines who studies water and disaster management. He says the country doesn't have a science problem, it has a coordination problem. One solution I think that they're looking at is creation of the Department of Water. As of now, I think there are more than 32 government agencies involved on the subject of water. So it's so fractured. National plans exist, but on the ground, local permits, traffic re-routing, and maintenance often fall apart. Investigations have uncovered hundreds of these ghost projects, like a two million dollar dike north of Manila, never completed. Audits into where the billions that were earmarked for these projects ended up are underway. But in the meantime, those impacted most by floods are stuck in what Angulis calls survival mode. You fear that your life is going to get worse. What do you do? You basically hope that the status quo is maintained. So you keep on voting for the same traditional politicians. You sell your vote, you know, to the highest bidder. Then you develop a system that has no checks and balances, where integrity, competence, and morality of public leaders are no longer first and foremost in the consciousness and minds of the citizens. Despite this, some communities are acting. Groups like Youth Strike for Climate Philippines and Project NOAA Volunteers are mapping flood risk, restoring mangroves, and demanding transparency from officials. But scientists warn that without stronger coordination, political accountability, the impacts will keep rising along with the waters. I believe that the water resource is the most difficult resource to govern and to manage. It has so many competing uses, and it has so many competing issues. Flooding is just one part of it. There are most of all other issues related to water that also needs to be looked into. A new generation of Filipinos is driving the protests over the flood corruption scandal. They're more digitally connected than ever and unwilling to accept corruption at the cost of survival. Could that be part of the tipping point? Gosh, looking back at history, I am reminded of historical examples where massive scandals alongside big natural disasters like typhoons and earthquakes have preceded major political shifts, even revolutions. And so stay tuned. We never really know what's going to happen and whether it's the tipping point or not. And the world is watching because as seas rise, the Philippines may only be the beginning.

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