Coastal Flood Responses in Manila Bay, the Philippines: Understanding Social Contract in the Policy-Making Processes

In 2011, Sitio Pariahan in the northern part of Metro Manila, the Philippines’ capital region, was submerged after Typhoon Nesat hit the country. In fact, Sitio Pariahan is not the only one. Many parts of Manila Bay have slowly been sinking, causing the populations to be prone to coastal floods. According to the existing studies, coastal floods in Manila Bay areas are caused by climate-induced sea-level rise and land subsidence due to the excessive groundwater extraction and rapid urban development. However, it appears that the policies implemented by the government tend to be infrastructural, for example, dike construction, which could provide immediate protection but do not really solve the problem. This case study, therefore, presents a detailed account of coastal flooding in Manila Bay, particularly on its causes and policy options to address it. More specifically, it introduces the application of social contract to understand how the terms and conditions governing the state-citizens relations in the Philippines affect government’s rationale in choosing policy options to solve the coastal flood problem.