FOLLOWING the recent citation for its best practice in delivering public service and program on housing, Valenzuela City was recognized again for its residential project that aims to relocate a total of 4,594 Valenzuela informal settler families (ISFs) living along the waterways into safer and more dignified communities by early-2018.
Named the Disiplina Village, this housing initiative earned for the locality its third Galing Pook Award, besting other 19 finalists.
In 2009 the initial site of this residential project opened in Barangay Ugong, benefitting 892 ISFs—all victims of Typhoon Ondoy—living along the dangerous banks of Tullahan River.
The newest phase in Barangay Bignay started to house relocatees from other waterways in the city last year. Disiplina Village could still accommodate around 3,702 more families that would result to zero Valenzuelano ISFs living along waterways by next year.
“Besides ensuring safe, affordable, decent and humane housing for informal settlers, the [on-site] and in-city relocation approach of the program ensures that beneficiaries are linked to their sources of livelihood and have access to more employment opportunities,” the award said of the initiative in its profile of the finalists.
Cumulatively, Disiplina Village is the country’s biggest in-city housing project with a total land area of 13 hectares for both sites and overall inventory of 4,594 units (28 square meters each) with loft provision and complete amenities.
In Bignay, the Disiplina Village has a 3S Center, or satellite city hall, with health station, day-care center, police community precinct, fire substation, multipurpose hall, basketball courts, elementary and high schools.
It also has livelihood facilities, such as community fishpond and vegetable farm, tofu-production miniplant and bag-sewing and shirt printing shop.
No less than Mayor Rexlon T. Gatchalian presented the innovative project to 19-member 2017 Galing Pook Awards National Selection Committee.
Speaking on behalf of the 10 awardees, Gatchalian expressed his gratitude to the Galing Pook Foundation for recognizing the best practices and programs of local government units nationwide and letting their stories be heard.
The fete, according to him, serves as an avenue to further improve and promote excellence in local governance throughout the country.
Valenzuela City received its first Galing Pook Award in 2012 for the 3S in Public Service Program, the city’s antigraft and corruption platform, and its second, in 2015 for Education 360 Degrees Investment Program, the city’s holistic approach to address gaps in public education system.
Launched in 1993, the Galing Pook Awards pioneers in searching and honoring innovative practices by local government units (LGUs).
The awardees were chosen from a national search of local governance programs, evaluated through a multilevel screening process based on positive results and impact, promotion of people’s participation and empowerment, innovation, transferability and sustainability, and efficiency of program-service delivery.
For this year’s edition, the search received 158 applications, of which only 40 were considered for site validation and was further trimmed down to 20 finalists.
Each of the 10 LGUs chosen for their outstanding local governance programs received P100,000 to further improve their initiative, and a marker of Galing Pook. The presentation and awarding ceremony was the highlight of the Galing Pook Foundation’s 2017 Festival of Best Practices held at the Novotel Manila, Araneta Center, Quezon City.