AS extreme weather events increasingly paralyze both urban and rural areas, the typical reliance on reactionary disaster relief must be replaced by proactive, watershed-based planning. This paradigm shift was highlighted in the 2026 Stormwater Summit held on July 21, where panelists tackled the urgent need to update stormwater management practices, adopt innovative approaches and build resilient cities through smart water management.
Secretary Christina Garcia Frasco, presidential adviser for sustainable and resilient communities, pointed out that protecting communities means “reducing risks before it becomes a crisis, strengthening preparedness and creating conditions for sustainable development to endure despite increasingly complex challenges.” Office of Civil Defense Ambassador Jose Sixto “Dingdong” Dantes explained another mindset that has to be changed: “Flooding has become so familiar that we’ve come to accept it in our daily lives. That when it rains, we automatically think, ‘Oh no, there’ll be a flood.’ How did we become so accustomed to the consequences that we accepted it as normal, when it doesn’t have to be.” Public Works Undersecretary Charles Calima spoke of the agency’s Oplan Kontra Baha program that aims to mitigate severe, heavy flooding in low-lying areas. He called “for a stronger collaboration with local government units, civil society and the private sector. Water knows no boundaries; it follows the river basin irrespective of the river basin. The intervention is not another structure... but it is coordination.” One nation that has successfully turned its water vulnerabilities into strengths is Singapore. PUB, Consultants Pte. Ltd. Managing Director Ryan Yuen said that Singapore’s National Water Agency, PUB, ensures both a sustainable water supply and the proper management of coastal and inland flood resilience. Reusing water over and over is a key part of their strategy. He emphasized the importance of not overwhelming infrastructure and the need for separate systems for water collection and wastewater management.
Another speaker from Singapore, CEO of Flexi Systems and FloodX, April Yang, presented innovations protecting businesses, facilities and homes. Earth Control Measures (ECM) compliant technologies represent critical site management strategies aimed at curbing soil erosion and preventing silt-contaminated runoff from entering public drainage systems and natural waterways. Key implementations of these strategies include perimeter cutoff drains, silt fences and specialized systems for treating silty water. While progressive nations such as Singapore have successfully integrated ECM through rigorous siltation legislation, such frameworks have yet to be fully realized in the Philippines.
Andrew Masigan, editor-in-chief of Archipelago Media, one of the event organizers, summarized the discussion: “For a country that receives so much rain, we have not learned to manage water well. This is the great paradox of water management in the Philippines: we suffer because we have too much water, then we suffer again because we don’t have enough. Clearly, something must change, and the discussions that we had today lead us in the right direction.”