Foundation for the Development of the Urban Poor

11/06/2026

On June 8, 2026, the Foundation for the Development of the Urban Poor (FDUP) and Barangay Batasan Hills Quezon City signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that further strengthened FDUP’s long-term partnership with Brgy. Batasan Hills in advocating rights of the urban poor. MOU signatories were Honorable Barangay Chair John “Jojo” M. Abad for Barangay Batasan Hills and Engr. Juan Paulo M. Genzola, FDUP OIC. Present for the signing were leaders from FDUP partner communities in Bukal, Taniman, Viewriver and Riverview.

The MOU forged between FDUP and Barangay Batasan Hills assures the collaborative implementation of the 3-year PILLAR project “Promoting Inclusion, Legal Empowerment, Advocacy, and Resilience Among Urban Poor Communities (PILLAR)” funded by the European Union (EU). The PILLAR Project is being implemented by FDUP as part of the Partnership of Philippine Support Service Agencies, Inc. (PHILSSA) consortium in partnership with Save the Children Philippines (SCP).
The goal of the PILLAR Project is “to strengthen the rights of urban poor communities to adequate housing, access to basic services, and protection from forced eviction through stronger community participation, legal empowerment, and partnership with Local Government Units (LGUs).”

The PILLAR Project strongly supports FDUP’s community organizing work as the core approach to strengthen partner urban poor communities to actively participate in decision-making and work with Local Government Units in shaping inclusive, child and gender-responsive policies and programs for safer and more resilient communities.

30/05/2026

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐕𝐚𝐥𝐮𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐢𝐭𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭: 𝐓𝐚𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐚𝐲'𝐬 𝐉𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐧𝐞𝐲 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐈𝐧𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐚𝐥 𝐒𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐥𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐝 𝐇𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐨𝐰𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐌𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐠𝐚𝐠𝐞 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐦

On March 7, 2026, students from Ateneo De Manila University’s Department of Sociology and Anthropology visited Talanay to mark the start of their community engagement as part of their ethnographic studies. For the next few months, the students were in Talanay to continue listening to the stories and narratives of the residents.

The Talanay that Nanay Delia, Tatay Flaving, and Nanay Lilibeth first saw was inconceivably different from the one that we visit almost every weekend. “Gubat [talaga] siya noon…” Nanay Delia told us. Nanay Lilibeth painted the picture for us, “Pagdating namin dito, sobrang hirap dahil walang ilaw. Napakadilim at sobrang nakakatakot.” Because of their status as informal settlers, everyday essentials were difficult to reach. Undeveloped land, unpaved roads, no running water, and no access to electricity were the norm for the original settlers of Talanay. Still, they persisted. They fought for every chance they had to improve their lives and homes.

In 1997, the residents of Talanay organized themselves for the purpose of negotiating for homeownership via the Community Mortgage Program (CMP): the beginning of the Tinig at Lakas ng Naninirahan sa Talanay Homeowners Association (TALANAY HOA). From the start, the Foundation for the Development of the Urban Poor (FDUP) stood with them to negotiate with the landowner for a lower and fairer price, as well as to originate their CMP claim. FDUP gave TALANAY HOA valuable organization training, paralegal training for legal matters, and accountancy training for the financial matters of the HOA. In 1999, the legal identity of TALANAY HOA was formed when they started applying, with FDUP, for loan documentation for CMP and the legal documents from the landowner and beneficiary.

Throughout our visits, the community members of TALANAY HOA praised CMP and told us how thankful they were for it. “Bago ako magkabahay, as in wala akong bahay. Nangungupahan ako for 26 years”, a resident told us. The pride and joy she had as she explained how she was able to finally become a homeowner is enough to make anyone cry.

Fear and uncertainty are normal, but they must be followed by a commitment to making things better. For yourself, for your family, and for your community. The original settlers of TALANAY HOA saw the state their home was in and sought to make it better. Perhaps the most beautiful thing observed in the visits to TALANAY HOA was just how much they were committed to each other. “We value commitment,” Nanay Lileth, a community leader, expressed to us. Commitment to each other, to the community, to their partner NGOs, and even to us whom they have only met recently. With commitment, you can survive anything. And the residents of TALANAY HOA are proof of that.

Photos by: AC Gesulga
Write-up by: Dio Aumentado

23/05/2026

13/05/2026

30/04/2026

The study argues that UDHA measures must be reinforced with stronger land governance and mixed‑income planning. The researchers urge both national and local governments to move away from reliance on land revenues and instead “direct/regulate the allocation or rezoning of certain areas for affordable housing.” This may include ownership expropriation in select cases or development expropriation—even involving informal settlements—through zoning regulations.

They further recommend mandating mixed‑income planning in all urban revitalization projects, including infrastructure initiatives guided by frameworks such as Transit‑Oriented Development principles. Escrow funds from the balanced housing regulation, they add, can help co‑finance inclusive revitalization projects.

The researchers also highlight the potential of community land trusts, noting that expropriation of land ownership may support programs “whereby landownership remains in trust, governed by corporate guidelines rather than the real estate market.”

In conclusion, the study calls for a comprehensive development approach in urban revitalization projects—one that ensures low‑income communities “are not fenced off from these developments but are part of the transformation process”.

MARAMING CONDO, MAHAL ANG BAHAY

Habang patuloy ang urban revitalization sa Metro Manila, lumabas sa pag-aaral ng Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) na lumalawak din ang "housing gap" ng mga Pilipino mula sa magkakaibang social brackets. Kasabay kasi ng pagtatayo ng mga high-rise housing units gaya ng condominium at apartment, tumataas din ang presyo ng lupa. Maraming low-income families tuloy ang napipilitang umalis sa Metro Manila para maghanap ng mas murang pabahay.

Basahin ang buong pag-aaral dito: https://bit.ly/pidsPR0401-16

24/04/2026

𝗣𝗜𝗗𝗦 𝗣𝗥𝗘𝗦𝗦 𝗥𝗘𝗟𝗘𝗔𝗦𝗘: 𝗣𝗜𝗗𝗦 𝘀𝘁𝘂𝗱𝘆 𝗳𝗹𝗮𝗴𝘀 𝘄𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗵𝗼𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗴𝗮𝗽 𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗱 𝗿𝗮𝗽𝗶𝗱 𝘂𝗿𝗯𝗮𝗻 𝗱𝗲𝘃’𝘁 𝗶𝗻 𝗠𝗲𝘁𝗿𝗼 𝗠𝗮𝗻𝗶𝗹𝗮

Urban revitalization has transformed Metro Manila’s landscape, marked by the rise of high-density, mixed-use developments and increases in land values. While these projects raised housing standards and increased the overall supply, researchers from the Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) warn that these gains are spatially uneven, as affordable housing continues to be pushed to peripheral areas.

In their study “Urban Revitalization and Shelter Inadequacy: A Geospatial Analysis”, PIDS researchers Jenica Ancheta, Marife Ballesteros, and Tatum Ramos trace how Metro Manila’s urban landscape has changed over the past three decades. They find that residential development “increased significantly and improved quality” between 1990 and 2020, with the fastest changes occurring in the last two decades as revitalization efforts accelerated alongside economic growth. They also identify a multicenter pattern of growth, with new residential and commercial clusters emerging in the southern and northern parts of Metro Manila.

📖 Read the full article at https://bit.ly/pidsPR0401-16

⬇️ Download the study at https://doi.org/10.62986/dp2025.40

25/03/2026

AN INVITATION!

KALBARYO 2026: " Lumalaki at Lumalawak na Pagkakaisa ng mga Samahan ng Maralita para sa Karapatan sa Pabahay, Serbisyo at Total Condonation,
Patuloy na Magbabantay sa Bagong Pag-Asa."


The Urban Poor Action Committee (UPAC), in collaboration with Community Organizers Multiversity - CO Multiversity, Urban Poor Associates (UPA), and the Philippine Educational Theater Association (PETA), warmly invites you to join Kalbaryo 2026.

This year's event will take place at the charred "Ground Zero" of the NIA Road settlement, a community recently devastated by a massive fire.


EVENT DETAILS
WHAT:
Kalbaryo 2026
WHEN:
March 31, 2026

WHERE:
EVACUATION CENTER – Manila Seedlings (In front of Phil. Children’s Medical Center - PCMC), Quezon City
GROUND ZERO
NIA Road Settlement Area, Quezon City
TIME:
6:30 -7:30 AM – Caridad (Serving food to fire-affected families)
7:30-8:30 AM – March from Evacuation Center to Ground Zero
8:30 am – 11:00 am – Main Program

The event will feature a powerful reenactment of the Passion of Christ, where participants symbolically "carry the cross" of poverty. This aims to highlight the urgent call for adequate housing, accessible basic services, and the total emancipation from financial obligations for relocated families already struggling in inadequate and substandard off-city sites with limited or no livelihood opportunities.

Key Highlights:
• Visual Reenactment: "Carrying the Cross" amidst the remains of fire-razed homes accompanied by songs, prayers and symbolic actions.
• Humanitarian Action: Caridad (charity) initiatives providing food and spiritual support to fire-affected families at the evacuation center.
• Policy Advocacy: Presentation of the "4 Pillars of Hope" toward a more humane and responsive government (Makataong Pamahalaan).

27/02/2026

14/02/2026

For incre­mental hous­ing, the DHSUD sought the assist­ance of the Advoc­ates of Hous­ing for All (AHA) in Decem­ber to identify pilot sites for the rol­lout of this scheme.

Fol­low­ing the assess­ment, five pilot sites were iden­ti­fied, ini­tially bene­fit­ing 271 fam­il­ies in: Lupang Arenda, Brgy. Sta. Ana, Taytay, Rizal (11 fam­il­ies); Parola, Brgy. 20, Tondo, Manila (31 fam­il­ies); Yao Vil­las, Brgy. Bancal, Car­mona, Cavite (20 fam­il­ies); St. Vin­cent Street, Brgy. Encanto, Angat, Bulacan (120 fam­il­ies); and Brgy. Canso­jong, Tal­isay City, Cebu (89 fam­il­ies).

This mod­al­ity offers fam­il­ies a phased and afford­able path­way to home improve­ment and own­er­ship, aligned with their fin­an­cial capa­city.

The Depart­ment of Human Set­tle­ments and Urban Devel­op­ment (DHSUD) opened 2026 with sus­tained momentum, rolling out key reforms to accel­er­ate hous­ing deliv­ery under Pres­id­ent Ferdin­and R. Mar­cos Jr.’s flag­ship Expan­ded Pam­bansang...