To collaborate or not: Dynamics of stakeholders cooperation in Philippine relocation initiatives

• Main Author: Velasco, Mark Anthony M.
• Format: text
• Language: English
• Published: Animo Repository 2016
• Subjects: Cooperation; Stockholders; Economics
• Online Access: https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/etd_doctoral/1227
• Institution: De La Salle University

To collaborate or not? This has been the dilemma confronting collective action efforts of social actors in the conduct of relocation projects in the Philippines. Getting the relevant stakeholders to cooperate has been difficult or close to impossible despite opportunities and mechanisms to do so. Therefore, the primary goal of the study is to create an answer to the main research question: how and why do stakeholders collaborate in relocation projects? The research problem was analyzed using the institutional analysis and development framework and collective action theory. To do this, the perspectives of the stakeholders individually and the group where collaboration happened were examined. The variables of the study include the exogenous variables represented by the biophysical and material conditions, attributes of the community and rules-in-use and the action arena represented by the interaction of stakeholders involved and the perceived potential outcomes. Initially, the study would like to inform the theory by validating the hypothesis that the exogenous variables determine the situation of interaction and outcomes in the action arena. The study has utilized the comparative case study research method with fifteen relocation projects as case subjects. Cases were randomly selected from an inventory of relocation programs in the country. The study indicated that stakeholders consider preconditional factors in deciding to engage in collaborative housing initiatives. Actors make a decision based on environmental factors like motivations, contributions, other stakeholders involved and the rules forged. Notably, the stakeholders put premium on trust issues, past experiences and social norms as important indicators of their commitment. These elements have fundamentally affected the collaborative process and its outcomes. The dynamics of collaboration revolves around the interactions of stakeholders based on the information shared, the process of communication, patterns of relations through informal agreements and community norms. In terms of outcomes, variations can be observed in each of the cases. The collaborative process determines most of the success or failure in the conduct of housing for the informal settlers.