Room 7A, Ground Floor, Bonifacio Hall
School of Labor and Industrial Relations(SOLAIR)
E. Jacinto Street, University of the Philippines Diliman
1101 Quezon City
Tel. +63-2 426 7785
Fax +63-2 426 7784
Contact: Mr Ananias F. Loza
www.geocities.com/pakisamaorg/

Community Empowerment Facility

Capacity-building for Landless Farmers and Farmworkers in The Philippines

ARnet

Sumilao Farmers' Foot march in the Philippines - Update October 2008

PAKISAMA's strategy has two main components: Federation building focuses on strengthening members' internal capacities to effectively participate in agrarian reform and rural development implementation, including improving their operational, financial and organizational systems. Connected with this task PAKISAMA focuses on strengthening two of its sectoral organizations: the rural women groups (LAKAMBINI-PAKISAMA) and fisherfolk groups (MAMAMYAN-PAKISAMA. Its second strategy involves conceptualizing and promoting sustainable integrated area development as a development framework with all its members throughout the country.

Policy advocacy and campaign. Over the years, PAKISAMA, in co-operation with other organizations and sectors, has conducted numerous campaigns that have helped to raise and sustain public awareness and support of land reform issues. Furthermore, PAKISAMA currently sits in several strategic national and local government committees and structures as the farmers' representative and uses this opportunity to create more impact in its advocacy work within the government bureaucracy.

Knowledge dissemination via the internet. As its primary national member in ARNET, PAKISAMA with the International Land Coalition, has collaborated with five other civil-society organizations, including AR NOW!, to construct and develop a web page called Anihan (meaning harvest time), which is specifically focused on agrarian reform and rural development concerns. Anihan features documents on the land struggles of local farmers' groups, national campaigns, and best practices on land tenure improvement and sustainable agriculture to widen the information base to a much larger audience that can learn from civil-society experiences on agrarian reform and rural development.

Capacity building on land reform implementation and sustainable agriculture. Through its members and partners, PAKISAMA has also been active in facilitating the bureaucratic process of actual land transfer to tenant and other landless farmers. It is likewise involved in post-land reform activities, particularly in promoting and building capacity on sustainable agriculture and land management practices which are essential in helping the new farmer-landowners to improve their productivity and incomes.

Land Acquisition
Land Tenure Systems
Community Capacity Building
Network Building
Institutional Development
Lobbying and Advocacy
Legislation, Regulations and Legal Support
Policy Research
Post Land Acqusition Services
Land Literacy
Women's Access to Land
Land and Water Rights