A penal farm that champions biodiversity

Sprawled on 8,334 hectares of land in Occidental Mindoro, the Sablayan Prison and Penal Farm (SPPF) is located at the foot of Mt. Siburan, one the country’s last vestiges of lowland forest, and is also identified as an Important Bird Area (IBA) and a Key Biodiversity Area (KBA) by Birdlife International and Haribon Foundation. Due to the area’s importance to biodiversity, SPPF became one of Haribon’s project partners for the Integrating Forest Conservation with Local Governance in the Philippines Project (IFCLGP) in 2001.

IFCLGP aimed to improve conservation of important areas through integration with local development planning and strengthening of local governance, raising the awareness of the local people, and local government on issues of forest protection and conservation. A Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) between the Department of Justice (DOJ) and Haribon Foundation was created, indicating commitment of SPPF’s active participation in the project activities as well as the conservation of Mt. Siburan.