TOP 10 OUTSTANDING LOCAL GOVERNANCE PROGRAMS www.galingpook.org
The Galing Pook Awards was launched in October 1993 in response to a pressing need following the enactment of the Local Government Code. At that time, local government units (LGUs) were in search of exemplary models to improve their operations and better serve their constituents. Galing Pook emerged as a valuable knowledge hub to address the requirements of LGUs, shedding light 2 on the possibilities when local government leaders collaborate closely with their communities through participatory governance. This approach emphasized the pivotal roles of people’s participation and empowerment in the success of LGU programs. Mayors and Governors demonstrated that involving communities in their initiatives was not just an idealistic notion but a practical and effective strategy. They became credible ambassadors of sound local governance principles. Recognizing that government alone cannot solve the issues faced by our country, especially among the marginalized communities, Galing Pook spearheaded the Citizenship Awards in 2015. This put the spotlight on civil society organizations that made positive contributions 2023 GALING POOK AWARDS
communities. It perfectly demonstrated that good governance can only exist when citizens are empowered to actively contribute in the development of communities. It also highlighted the Filipino spirit of bayanihan as we celebrated the positive contributions of citizenled groups through the Mamamayan Mamamayani Governance Fair. www.galingpook.org Today, we see more local governments and empowered citizens working together towards shared development outcomes. We celebrate this year’s awardees and finalists from among LGUs and civil society. The programs that they have initiated will serve as models for other institutions to replicate. This is not an easy task, but it is possible through strategic collaborations across all sectors: public, private and civil society. As Galing Pook celebrates the 30th Anniversary since the prestigious awards for the Ten Outstanding Local Governance Programs was launched, it remains committed to the work of leveling up our collective capacity to implement innovative, resilient and sustainable solutions that will create a positive impact on people’s lives. 3
from the President I extend my heartfelt greetings and sincerest appreciation to the Galing Pook Foundation for your active role in promoting the significance of participatory governance, which highly complements our government’s efforts to achieve inclusive growth. Likewise, our grateful nation joins you in giving due recognition to the awardees and finalists of the 2023 Galing Pook Awards and the 2023 Galing Pook Citizenship Awards. The publication of this 2023 Galing Pook Magazine highlights the merits of the awardees from the public and private sectors. Underlying the glitz and glamor of this accolade are layers upon layers of stories of struggles, hopeful outlooks, and humbling successes. May their narratives evoke inspiration and motivation to every Filipino citizen. It is my fervent hope that the innovative practices that the awardees have introduced in their respective communities be emulated by other local government units and groups as may be necessary, so that we may realize our vision of a Bagong Pilipinas that beams with Filipino ingenuity and brilliance. I wish everyone the best in your endeavors. Mabuhay kayong lahat! Ferdinand Romualdez Marcos, Jr. President Republic of the Philippines 4 2023 GALING POOK AWARDS
from DILG Warmest greetings and congratulations to the men and women behind the 2023 Galing Pook Magazine featuring the awardees for this year’s Galing Pook Awards who serve as paragons of good governance and resourcefulness at the local level. I likewise extend my profound appreciation to the Galing Pook Foundation on the 30th anniversary of your pioneer award-giving initiative that has proven to be an effective and progressive mechanism in searching for and recognizing innovative and excellent local governance programs. As a former local chief executive who had the fortune of receiving the Galing Pook Award, I understand the amount of honor and pride that this recognition can bring to our people and communities, not to mention the collaborative effort, time and hard work that LGU officials and employees have exerted to achieve such feat. I thus extend my sincerest and proudest commendations to all awardees, finalists, and applicants who have participated in this year’s Galing Pook Awards. You have clearly shown exceptional creativity, innovation and novelty in all of your programs. This year’s theme, “Galing Pook @ 30: Leveling Up Local Governance Innovations Towards Building Resilient Communities”, captures the commitment required of our local governments in responding to the issues of our time–on addressing the challenges of food security and nutrition, and in building resilient communities empowered by sustainable development. I am confident that the awardees and finalists of the 2023 Galing Pook Awards exemplify the inventive drive that pushes our LGUs beyond their comfort zone and raises the bar of excellence for local governance. With this, I call on all our awardees and finalists to continue to build on the successes of their stellar programs. Work with other LGUs too, so they can adopt, localize, or emulate them in their respective communities. Atty. Benjamin C. Abalos, Jr. Secretary Department of the Interior and Local Government www.galingpook.org Nawa’y magsilbing inspirasyon ang mga kwento ng matino, mahusay at maaasahang programa na nakapaloob sa babasahin na ito sa iba pang mga komunidad sa bansa, upang sama-sama nating maabot ang pangarap na isang Bagong Pilipinas. Mabuhay ang Galing Pook! Mabuhay ang mga pamahalaang lokal! 5
from LGA The growing urgency of building climate and disaster resilience has never been greater for local communities across the Philippines. As frontliners in times of calamities, local government units are at the forefront of strengthening resilience on the ground. We at the DILG-Local Government Academy support Galing Pook Magazine’s timely focus on local resilience initiatives as one of their key areas of focus. We encourage all local leaders to leverage and replicate proven, community-driven innovations that make cities, municipalities and barangays adaptive to intensifying climate impacts and disaster risks. Our government over the years has provided strong technical and policy support to localize and operationalize the national resilience frameworks. But true success rests on empowered local leaders mobilizing citizens, civil society, academe and the private sector to co-create solutions tailored to their unique realities. It is up to the LGUs to not just plan, but to act on their plans. LGUs featured in this edition of Galing Pook Magazine are exemplary in this regard. They are able to translate plans and concepts to concrete processes, systems, and services that make a difference in the lives of their constituents. However, we believe there are plenty more with the potential to be recognized. To do so, we also urge LGUs to invest in capacity development to sharpen their ability to manage climate and disaster risks. With proper CapDev, LGUs can better channel their recently expanded resources (as a result of the Supreme Court Mandanas-Garcia Ruling) into resilience priorities and further expand and pursue innovation in resilience governance. We congratulate Galing Pook’s awardees and finalists which focused on taking bold action to build safer, more sustainable and resilient communities amidst challenging times. Your innovative initiatives on disaster risk reduction, climate adaptation and environmental protection inspire confidence that our efforts in localizing resilience efforts are paying off. Thelma T. Vecina, CESO IV Executive Director DILG-Local Government Academy 6 The magazine’s compelling stories demonstrate what local leaders can achieve with vision, initiative and inclusiveness. May these awardees and finalists continue serving as champions and modeling the way forward for their fellow LGUs. We, together with Galing Pook, look forward to further championing local successes and while supporting a new generation of local resilience innovations now and in the future. May these success stories not be the peak of local resilience innovations but rather form part of a continuously ascending path towards an ever-moving goal of a safer thriving Philippines, one LGU at a time. 2023 GALING POOK AWARDS
from SM Prime Holdings On our third year as Galing Pook Foundation’s institutional partner, SM is very proud to be celebrating the GP awards with you once again. We have seen the progress the awards have made–Encouraging more barangays, municipalities and LGUs to improve their residents’ wellbeing and surroundings. The awards now have a wider audience, fostering better ideas, strategies and solutions all toward good governance, people empowerment and disaster resilience. The theme for this year’s awards is Galing Pook @ 30: Leveling Up Local Governance Innovations towards Building Resilient Communities. Marking a milestone, it speaks of the strength of this program as one that has lasted years of changing priorities and pressing issues in our country. Even through a pandemic, the search for the Top 10 Outstanding Local Governance Programs remains an important vehicle for nation building. On your thirtieth anniversary, I would like to recognize the past and present Galing Pook Foundation leaders, members of the National Selection Committee and the Board of Judges. Thank you for leading the way. Each of you were chosen for your own impact to the pillars of sustainability and resilience. Being part of this program is an opportunity, a privilege and an honor, to contribute to sustainable development of the Philippines. To the award nominees and winners, the culminating event is the validation of your innovation, your hardwork and your drive to provide a better future for the people. We laud all the projects submitted, may you continue to build on them, share it with other LGUs and scale it for even more to benefit. SM Prime remains committed to the Galing Pook Foundation’s objectives and as a private sector partner, we are cognizant of the fact that sustainability and resilience can only be achieved when all sectors move as one. Collaboration and cooperation will elevate our advocacies to the heights we dream of, to bring peace and prosperity for the people and the planet. Jeffrey C. Lim President SM Prime Holdings, Inc. www.galingpook.org 7
from the Chairperson This is a special year for the Galing Pook Foundation as we celebrate 30 years since the Galing Pook Awards was launched in October 1993, a year after the implementation of the Local Government Code of 1991. We celebrate the rich and impressive three decades of adaptive innovations and good local governance. This year’s theme is “Leveling Up Local Governance Innovations Towards Building Resilient Communities.” This theme captures the profound journey of progress we have undertaken, showcasing the enduring dedication of the many individuals and institutions who are committed to improving the way we serve our communities. All of our winners and finalists from the local government units and civil society organizations have shown exemplary models that need to be promoted and replicated nationwide. We look forward to working with all of you in our shared advocacies towards promoting good governance and active citizenship. Allow me to extend our sincerest gratitude to the Board of Judges and the National Selection Committee for the Galing Pook Awards, and the Citizenship Awards Selection Committee, who worked really hard to identify the winners. Our work will not end with the recognition of our winners; in fact, this is only the beginning. We thank our partners, the Department of the Interior and Local Government led by Secretary Benhur Abalos, who likewise is a Galing Pook awardee; the Local Government Academy led by Executive Director Thelma Vecina; SM Prime Holdings, Inc. led by Mr. Hans Sy, Chairman of the Executive Committee and Mr. Jeffrey C. Lim, President. Thank you also to our longstanding partner, the Land Bank of the Philippines for joining us once again as a sponsor for this year’s awards. We also thank the Department of Health, the Australian Government, Oxfam Pilipinas, Agrea Foundation, Institute for Social Entrepreneurship in Asia and PRESENT Coalition for partnering with us in our search for outstanding civil society organizations for the Citizenship Awards. Mel Senen S. Sarmiento Chairperson Galing Pook Foundation 8 As we celebrate 30 years of the Galing Pook Awards, our previous Galing Pook awardees continue to inspire us and allow us to reach greater heights. We invite our partners to join us in promoting local innovations so that we could create a larger impact and transform our Philippine society to become more inclusive, equitable, resilient, and sustainable. Mabuhay po tayong lahat! 2023 GALING POOK AWARDS
from the Executive Director Milestones allow us to look back on how far along we have come in our journey as we look forward to the rest of the path ahead of us. Many of the innovative programs that were recognized by Galing Pook in the past decades have now set the standards for governance. What used to be best practices are now norms that all LGUs must institutionalize since many national government agencies have adopted these into their own policies and programs. Peer-to-peer learning among local governments also led to adaptations of various Galing Pook Awarded programs. As we celebrate this year’s milestone, it is our hope that we could constantly set the bar high in holding our public officials accountable in delivering quality programs and services with and for their communities. We have come a long way, and yet, we still have a long way to go. Understanding the complex challenges that we face today with climate change, extreme poverty and hunger, poor learning outcomes, geopolitical crises, and global pandemics, we realize that we need to find new ways of doing things. While many associate innovations with technology-enabled solutions, which we need and encourage in our society, we must also appreciate that these could also be in the form of creating new connections and networks. The challenges we face require each person to contribute to an adaptive, systemic, and sustainable solution. Good local governance innovations are those that empower communities and citizens to participate in every step of the development process–from understanding the problems to designing interventions and then implementing and monitoring these for further improvement. Georgina Ann Hernandez Yang Executive Director Galing Pook Foundation www.galingpook.org The programs that you will learn about in the succeeding pages will demonstrate how active and empowered citizens enable governments to become effective, efficient and equitable through their various outstanding programs. We are featuring 17 local governance programs and 10 citizen-led programs that all share the same goal of addressing urgent community issues ranging from peace and development, justice, health, food security, livelihoods, nutrition, emergency response, and public safety. We hope that these programs would provide models that could help you develop your own solutions to your community’s adaptive challenges. We hope that these programs would inspire you to aspire for better governance in your own communities and throughout our country. 9
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