Galing Pook Contents 3 4 6 7 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 22 24 26 28 32 33 35 36 38 The Galing Pook Beacons of Good Governance: Hope for the Country Energizing local economies through partnerships Helping promote local economies Children of Peace Cotabato Province An Empowering Barangay Code Barangay Sanito Transforming Payatas Dumpsite Quezon City Alliance Building for Landscape Development Allah Valley Service Without Delay through Centralized Warehousing Marikina City Orchestrating Efforts Toward a Sustainable City San Carlos City Disaster Risk Reduction Albay Governance as a Shared Responsibility City of San Fernando, Pampanga Condo Living for the Urban Poor Taguig City From Ash to Cash Pampanga Province Special Citation: Local Incentive Mechanisms that Work Award for Continuing Excellence The 2008 Finalists 2008 Regional Selection Committee 2008 National Selection Committee Galing Pook Foundation Board of Trustees and Secretariat Cover Design Concept by Dr. Eddie Dorotan • Layout and Main Articles by Allen M. Mariano • Photos submitted by LGUs 2 • Galing Pook 2008
The Galing Pook The Galing Pook awards is a pioneering program that recognizes innovation and excellence in local governance. It started in October 21, 1993 under the joint initiative of the Local Government Academy-Department of the Interior and Local Government, the Ford Foundation, and other individual advocates of good governance from the academe, civil society and the government. Vision We are a leading resource institution that promotes innovation, sustainability, citizen empowerment, and excellence in local governance. Mission The Asian Institute of Management carried on the awards program until 2001. Earlier in 1998, the Galing Pook Foundation was formed as a juridical institution to sustain the program. We promote excellence in local governance through recognition, sharing of information and support of efforts to replicate best practices at the local level. Since 1994, more than 230 programs from 152 local government units have already won recognition. The Galing Pook winners are chosen each year from a wide array of programs from local governments after undergoing a rigorous multi-level screening process. We encourage partnerships among civil society organizations, private sector, and government agencies at local, national and global levels to improve quality of life. The winning programs are selected based on positive results, promotion of people's participation and empowerment, transferability and sustainability, and efficiency of program service delivery. Par artners The Par tners FORD FOUNDATION LOCAL GOVERNMENT ACADEMY Galing Pook 2008 • 3
Beacons of Good Governance: for Country Hope for the Country A midst the continuing controversies and the economic intricacies all around us, we never fail to find local government units that keep the light of hope for our country. On this occasion, we honor another ten beacons of good governance after a full year of thorough searching. At the southernmost part of our archipelago, we find one barangay in Ipil, Zamboanga Sibugay that is able to set aright its financial position. It introduced sensible regulatory fees for its basic services and economic and environmental programs, while promoting peace and order by unleashing the potentials of its mandate through the Sanito Barangay Government Code, a unique innovation coming from the most basic local government unit. The two provinces of South Cotabato and Sultan Kudarat showed how the involvement of various LGUs, where not only livelihood but lives are at stake, can work in an inter-government and multi-sector comprehensive and concerted action to address urgent multi-territorial concerns. The duty bearers and stakeholders in Allah Valley spanning two provinces get their acts together on a sustained major environmental task, a feat that most LGUs in the country should consider in the face of ominous environmental trends. Among our three winners from Mindanao, we often hear Cotabato Province being besieged by armed conflicts and natural disasters causing the displacement of Muslims, Indigenous Peoples and Christians. The Cotabato provincial government thought of focusing on the interests of the children first being the most vulnerable group. They undertook multi-dimensional initiatives to guarantee the welfare and protection of their young while effectively entrusting them the significant mission of promoting harmony as Children of Peace. Now, let me take you to the center of our archipelago where we have San Carlos City in Negros Occidental as the lone champion of good governance in the 4 • Galing Pook 2008 Visayas this year. Vying for the Galing Pook Award for Continuing Excellence, this time, they showed that economic growth and ecological balance must be integral to LGU’s development initiatives ensuring the involvement of all sectors in the process. The City of San Carlos continues to transform its rural communities into agro-industrial areas that are economically viable and leads their people to be socially responsible and mindful of the environment. Moving up to the south of Luzon in the Bicol Region, the area most prone to strong typhoons and volcanic activities, the provincial government of Albay institutionalized their Public Safety and Emergency Management Office to protect and preserve life and property during emergencies. They promote disaster risk reduction in the framework of climate change capacitating communities to be proactive and disaster resilient to ensure that not a single casualty in emergency situations ever take place. Their program has made them the laboratory and knowledge resource of such undertakings in the Philippines and abroad. For this batch of champions in good governance, we have three from the National Capital Region. One is the City of Taguig whose Family Townhomes Project for the Poor provides opportunities to their homeless constituents for decent but affordable shelter with efficient utility services while capacitating them through livelihood programs to afford the amenities. They demonstrated that housing for the poor need not be, literally and figuratively, cheap. Second is Quezon City which showed us how to undertake what is thought to be an insurmountable task – the rehabilitation of the Payatas waste disposal site. The Quezon City government proved that tackling environmental health and safety, sustainable livelihood and clean development processes are altogether doable even with comparably lesser funding requirements and far considerable benefits as when the area was left barely managed.
Warehouse Management System. Their example of procurement and supplies management and judicious utilization of expendable materials are already catching the interest of other LGUs. Marikina made operational the virtue of prudence in the use of the city’s resources and the efficient supply c hain and property management to address the present and future needs of the city. Up North, we have the City of San Fernando in Pampanga which made governance a shared responsibility. They established a performance measurement management system used in businesses to improve governance. The City raised the standards of public management through citizen’s participation and institutionalized a pact to achieve their collective aspirations articulated in the City’s roadmap. Completing our current roster of excellent and innovative LGUs is the Province of Pampanga whose contentious quarrying program should not deflect us from the underlying reasons why it is chosen to be among this batch’s prestigious winners. Faced with all the odds right from the onset, the Provincial government of Pampanga mustered the will to institute the necessary fiscal management and accountability measures in its quarrying operations. Amidst formidable interests, it chose to pursue the long needed reform to allow its people to genuinely benefit from the quarrying revenues. With these fine examples of good governance, the challenge for us now is to make them ripple through to more LGUs, to all levels of government, to the entire country. We should take the next steps from celebrating and promoting these successes, to concretely endeavoring for these examples to be actually adopted, to reach the point of redirecting our collective consciousness towards good governance as the norm rather than a peculiarity. Like the LGUs that we honor on this occasion, let us all seize the opportunities at hand and create them where there are none. Let these LGUs be our inspirations, the bearer of hope that what is needed and best for our people should come to pass. With these fine examples of good governance, the challenge for us now is to make them ripple through to more LGUs, to all levels of government, to the entire country Rafael L. Coscolluela Chairperson Galing Pook Foundation Galing Pook 2008 • 5
Development Bank of the Philippines Energizing local economies partnerships through par tnerships I n behalf of the Development Bank of the Philippines, I would like to congratulate the winners of the 2008 Galing Pook. It is certainly heartwarming and inspiring to hear the stories of this year’s awardees, and how they have brought progress to their communities while winning back the trust of their constituents. DBP’s support to the Galing Pook Awards reflects our commitment to encourage the development of local government programs that can fast-track positive socio-economic impacts and people empowerment. We hope that through this initiative, more local government units can institutionalize good governance and consequently bring more effective service to the Filipino people. It is also our way of thanking the local government sector for the strong linkages we have harnessed with them. For the past 62 years, DBP has banked on its solid partnerships with various local government units in spurring progress in the countryside. We have worked closely with them for a number of relevant initiatives such as water systems, infrastructure, housing programs, and other projects that enable our society to progress as it should. We don’t intend to let up this year. We want to do more, especially with the need to energize the domestic economy in light of the financial crunch affecting major economies around the world. We thus encourage local government units to partner with us for their priority development projects — be it in infrastructure and logistics, community development programs like housing, hospitals, and schools, or environmental initiatives. We have P47.6 billion in available funds that LGUs can tap for their different development thrusts. We are looking at the right projects and the right LGU-partners. I commend this year’s Galing Pook winners for their efforts to provide greater service to our primary stakeholders—the Filipino people. They have definitely raised the bar in public governance a few notches higher. At the same time, they have helped in dispelling misconceptions of corruption and incompetence in government particularly in the local level. I hope they can continue to build on these gains, and that together with DBP, we can continue to make a difference in the lives of millions of Filipinos. REYNALDO G. DAVID President and CEO Development Bank of the Philippines I commend this year’s Galing Pook winners for their efforts to provide greater service to our primary stakeholders — the Filipino people. They have definitely raised the bar in public governance a few notches higher. 6 • Galing Pook 2008
Helping promote local economies G reetings to the men and women behind the Galing Pook Awards and congratulations to all the winners of this prestigious award. We commend this effort to recognize innovative and sustainable programs of our Local Government Units (LGUs) which can be replicated by other cities and municipalities in the country. This is parallel to our thrust of helping promote the growth of local economies through financing and provision of technical and marketing assistance to key players in rural growth and development. To our partner LGUs, may you continue to implement more effective programs and exercise good governance that would benefit your constituents particularly in the promotion of livelihood opportunities, improvement of agricultural productivity, establishment of environmental protection and disaster management systems, and development of housing and educational facilities. For our part, LANDBANK will remain supportive of LGUs as we consider you among our effective allies in fostering growth and development of our communities. . . . . may you continue to implement more effective programs and exercise good governance that would benefit your constituents. . . . GILDA E. PICO President and CEO LAND BANK OF THE PHILIPPINES Galing Pook 2008 • 7
I n war-torn areas, it is the c hildren who are usually the victims and are even recruited to become soldiers. In the conflict areas of Cotabato, the local government has taken a more positive approach by recruiting and forming children to become peace advocates who can lead the way to resolving the armed conflict. The Cotabato provincial government realized that the armed conflict in the region is partly rooted in the underlying distrust between the three peoples of Mindanao—the indigenous people, the Moro people and the Christian settlers. And that it would be a far more difficult task to change the perception of the adults who have already made up their minds than to convince the children who are more open to new ideas. Thus, in August of 2003, the provincial government of Cotabato began implementing its Children First Program (CFP). The objective of the CFP is to promote 8 • Galing Pook 2008 Cotabato Province Peace Children of Peace camaraderie among the Moro, IP and Christian youth by having them share their experiences and aspirations. The program also seeks to develop confidence and trust among the youth and encourage them to actively campaign for peace in their respective communities. Lastly, the program provides avenues for self improvement through formal and technical education. The CFP has many components but the Children of Peace (COP) is its banner program, which is designed to create better and long-lasting ties between the youth in the province. Essentially, the COP program brings the youth from the tri-peoples of Cotabato together at a four to seven-day workshop in a learning, sharing and living environment to make them understand and appreciate each other’s culture and belief systems. Among the topics they discuss include Peace Building, Understanding the Muslim, Christian and IP faith and children’s rights. By encouraging the children to share, learn, understand and appreciate each other’s cultures and beliefs, the program hopes to correct misconceptions and develop better relationships. The idea is to enable the young to grow and learn to live together in peace and harmony. Since 2003, six batches of children, or a total of 239 children, have participated in the program. Some of them
schools received the packages of tec hnology which proved very helpful in teac hing math and science concepts. An assessment of the Tele Eskwela program showed that participating pupils achieved scores which were 10 to 15 percent higher than those who did not. The program also promoted higher pupil-teacher interaction in class. The other components of the CFP— Study Now, Pay Later Plan; Balik Eskwela; Books for Peace; OSY Skills Training; Oral Hygiene; and Sanitation; and Tele Eskwela—help enhance the children’s education. The Pasko Alay sa mga Bata program enables the indigent children to enjoy Christmas. In the Books for Peace component program, a total of 101 schools were able to access books from the Books for the Barrios, Inc., an NGO based in the United States. The creation of the mini-libraries in the recipient schools developed the students’ love for reading, increased their reading abilities and widened their horizons. With the Study Now, Pay Later Plan, deserving students were able to get an education. A total of 2,380 scholars have been supported by the Provincial Government since 2003. A total of 1,235 have graduated and a total of 1000 students are currently enrolled in various colleges and universities in Cotabato Province. Meanwhile, the Skills Training enabled the out-ofschool youth to learn livelihood skills. Twenty out-of-school youth were given technical scholarships in cooperation with TESDA. These young people now have the means to earn livelihood through the skills they have learned. The Provincial Government has limited resources but it managed to enlist the help of other institutions and agencies like the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the ABS-CBN Foundation, Inc. These agencies donated educational materials suc h as books and school supplies as well as equipment like television sets Every year, the Provincial Government celebrates Christmas day with the institutionalization of the Pasko Alay sa mga Bata. With the assistance of the Provincial Department of Social Welfare and Development, indigent children from selected barangays are gathered for the Christmas celebration. A simple party and By encouraging the children to share, learn, understand and appreciate each other’s cultures and beliefs, the program hopes to correct misconceptions and develop better relationships gift giving is conducted for the children. The CFP was borne out of the ardent desire to find a strategic end to the festering conflict plaguing the province of Cotabato. It is premised on the belief that by changing paradigms among the young, peace might become attainable in Mindanao. When the children’s perceptions of each other change, they might learn to live more peacefully together. And when the young are better educated, they also have more opportunities to become more productive and are more likely to pursue a life of peace and prosperity. The program is simple, sustainable and highly replicable in many areas of Mindanao. Among the mechanisms that make it sustainable are the following: the institutionalization of an office that handles the planning, implementation, and assessment of the projects under the program; the passing of the Children’s Code, an ordinance that spells out programs that the young need for their development and protection; the cooperation of institutions whose contributions ensure that the program will go beyond any leadership in the Provincial Government; and continued linkages with development partners from various sectors who aim to ensure the continuity of the program. CONTACT became scholars of the provincial government and seven have already graduated from various colleges and universities. The COP graduates are organized in a way that encourages them to maintain ties and to work for peace in their communities. In time, a critical mass of peace advocates would hopefully form in their respective areas. Governor Jesus N. Sacdalan Tel. No.(064) 278-7001 Fax No.(064) 278-7053 Galing Pook 2008 • 9
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