Community Development Grants Project Philippines - Community Development Grants Project: the Kalahi-CIDSS Project � Kapit-Bisig Laban sa Kahirapan (Linking Arms Against Poverty) Comprehensive and Integrated Delivery of Social Services � aimed to improve welfare in rural areas by targeting communities where poverty incidence was greater than the national average with small-scale, community driven development projects that targeted basic infrastructure needs.  The project built upon and supported the application of the participatory planning, implementation, and evaluation methodology developed by the Government of the Philippines Department of Social Welfare and Development, in collaboration with the World Bank.

Communities were selected to participate in the Kalahi-CIDSS Project based on specific criteria, including geographic location, poverty incidence, and the ability of communities to participate in the entire program. After a community was enrolled in Kalahi-CIDSS, the Community Empowerment Activity Cycle began. Each cycle followed a progression of strategies and activities to promote transparency and accountability. Projects were designed through a consultative process that incorporated input and priorities of the entire community, including women.  From procurement to implementation to maintenance, all processes were discussed and agreed upon by the community. Over the course of three cycles, MCA-Philippines' National Project Management Office gradually handed off responsibilities for the implementation of Kalahi-CIDSS activities to local governments to sustain.

The project empowered communities to participate fully in development activities that addressed the needs they identified and provided guidance on managing assets in a sustainable way.  It improved the link between community priorities and the development programs of local government, and used investments in a transparent manner to promote greater accountability and reduce poverty.  Grants were provided directly to local communities, who were then responsible for project selection, the procurement of goods and services, and in many cases, the operations and maintenance of physical assets.

Complementing projects like farm-to-market roads, school buildings, health stations, drainage systems and footpaths, the program also included a $1 million Gender Incentive Grant to promote gender equality and women's empowerment at the village and municipal levels.  The Gender Incentive Grant funded activities that addressed barriers to either men or women participating in community activities, decision-making processes, and economic activities such as non-traditional skills training for women, women support shelters, and maternity services. The effort particularly emphasized and encouraged women's leadership and opportunities for paid employment through Kalahi-CIDSS. Women community volunteers made up 10 percent of paid skilled and unskilled labor in community project construction in 2015, a significant increase from a baseline of 3 percent in 2010. And more than 1,399 women benefited from certificate training on non-traditional skills such as plumbing, welding, electrical installation, carpentry, painting, tile-setting, hollow blocks-making and masonry.

With 3,760 small-scale, community-driven development projects in six regions of the Philippines, Kalahi-CIDSS benefited nearly 1 million households.  In 2014, citing the success of the Kalahi-CIDSS Project and other community-driven development programs around the world, the Government made Kalahi-CIDSS a national model for development project planning and implementation with a focus on inclusive development and poverty alleviation.  The nationwide roll-out incorporated compact-introduced enhancements, such as environmental safeguards, enhanced methods of design and construction, and support for gender integration into project design and implementation.