Ten Outstanding Local Governance Programs

Health Insurance for the Poor
Bindoy, Oriental Negros
"Bawal magkasakit!” (It is forbidden to get sick!). This is the tagline of a commercial advertisement which highlighted the fact that medicines are prohibitively expensive in the Philippines; especially for indigent families. But, in Bindoy, Oriental Negros, indigent families are assured of an affordable health insurance program.

A 2006 survey showed that 73 percent of the 7,204 households in Bindoy are indigents with a per capita income of less than PhP11,480. To date, all of these indigent households are covered by the Bindoy Social Health Insurance Indigency Program. Before the program was put in place, most of those who got sick and hospitalized could not afford the necessary drugs and medicines and often could not pay their hospital bills because they were impoverished. Often, they would choose to endure their illness and would only go to the doctor when their health has deteriorated. That all changed in February 2002 when the BSHIIP started.
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The Village Mediators
Cebu City
Court litigations are costly. This is why the poor lament that justice works only for the rich. With the advent of the Barangay Justice Service System in Cebu City, the poor now have a venue to address their grievances at no cost at all.

In July 27, 2003, the Lupong Tagapamayapa (Peace Council) from 80 barangays of Cebu City organized themselves and elected their first set of officers. They called themselves the Liga Ng Mga Lupong Tagapamayapa of Cebu City (or League of Peace Councils of Cebu City). They were the first to incorporate a federation into a nonstock, non-profit organization. They set out to implement the program dubbed, “Strengthening Justice System in the Grassroots.” The beneficiaries of the program are the Lupons and the barangay residents.
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A Community Prepared for Disasters
Infanta, Quezon
Perhaps, there is no better wake-up call than a disaster that has just occurred; especially one which resulted in the massive loss of lives and property. Such was the case for the LGU in Infanta, Quezon after flashfloods swept away barangays in the municipality in November 29, 2004. The disaster galvanized the municipal government of Infanta and its communities to develop their own Community-based Disaster Preparedness and Management Program for the 60,209 residents. And what better way to prepare for disaster than by enjoining everyone to play their important part.

With the CBDPM in place, Infanta was able to coordinate with Search and Rescue teams during the occurrence of Typhoon “Reming” in Infanta in December 2006 and managed to rescue and evacuate a number of affected families. In the span of only three years, the LGU also managed to rehabilitate and repair municipal roads, bridges and other infrastructures damaged by the November 2004 flashfloods. With the help of international and local NGOs and funding donors, the recovery period of local entrepreneurs, people’s organizations, farmers and fisher folks was also shortened.
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Price Support for Rice and Corn Farmers
Isabela Province
Isabela Province is one of the biggest corn and rice producing provinces in the Philippines. But, only big traders and middlemen were benefiting and not the farmers who were the real producers. This prompted the provincial government to launch the Price Stabilization Program for Rice and Corn, a partnership between the Provincial Government of Isabela and the National Food Authority.

Beginning in October 2005, a portion of Isabela’s Economic Development Fund was used to subsidize rice and corn production in the province. A sum of PhP2.00 per kilo is added to the support price of the NFA for corn and rice. To promote the program, the provincial government conducted advocacy campaigns and the holding of a buyers-sellers forum. A Memorandum of Agreement between the Local Government Unit and the National Food Authority was also executed. To increase public awareness and acceptance of the project, the local government undertook print and broadcast information drives at the barangay and municipal level, organized meetings and briefings and launched advocacy campaigns.

The price stabilization program helped Isabela’s grains farmers fetch higher prices for their products. It also made the governor very popular among her constituents. Contrary to earlier expectations that the program would not sit well with Isabela’s businessmen and traders, most have actually welcomed the project. When market prices are competitive, the provincial government bids out the stocks of rice and corn to interested traders or businessmen. The income derived from the sale goes back to the provincial fund and is subsequently channeled to help even more farmers for the next harvest season.
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Land and Shelter for the Homeless
Las Piñas City
Building a house for one family is a daunting task. It entails resources and at least a month to complete a decent house.

The Las Piñas local government was well aware of the difficulties entailed when it set out to build houses for 36,710 homeless families within a span of only 10 years. The project began in 1995, and the critics bewailed that it was a noble but unrealistic exercise given the inadequate resources and the very short period allotted. Getting halfway through their target would be incredible. And yet, somehow, they did get halfway through!

Apparently, Las Piñas took to heart the words of the late Pope John XXIII that shelter is not only a basic human need but a basic right of every person and families that must be upheld by those who have been given the responsibility and authority to do so. Of Las Piñas City’s 472,780 urban population (NSO, 2000 Census), 36,710 families belonged to the socalled urban poor, who were squatters in the twenty barangays of Las Piñas City.
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Eco Savers
Marikina City
Waste segregation is basic in ecological waste management. And what better way to educate people about waste segregation and reduction than by starting them young. In Marikina, the local government introduced a waste reduction program that involved school children. This has enabled the program to instill waste segregation and recycling practices at the household level.

Through this program, a total of 238,000 kilograms of waste have been diverted from dumpsites, which could have contributed to air and land pollution. The monetary value of the recyclables has reached a total of P1.3 Million, which could have ended up in the dumpsite had they not been recovered.
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Preparing Future Leaders
Naga City
The City Youth Month Program of the Naga City government is an 18-year old competitive local internship initiative that exposes future leaders of the city to the challenges of urban governance. For a month each year, the project enabled selected youth leaders to experience how to handle local government operations.

After the 1986 Edsa uprising, the new city government under Mayor Jesse Robredo created a mechanism for more meaningful youth involvement in government that would stoke “their sincerity and enthusiasm in helping build a country they have always wanted.” The mechanism would impart “a firsthand knowledge of government functions related to community problems and development,” according to Robredo in his Executive Order 89-001, which declared April 15-May 15 as youth month in Naga.
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Together, Making Lives Better
PALMA Alliance, Cotabato
Normally, building a kilometer of an allweather road would cost a million pesos—the fee charged by private contractors. This is quite a hefty expense for a municipality to shoulder alone. But in Cotabato, five contiguous municipalities, with the help of the provincial government, pooled their resources and proceeded to build a road network which cost them roughly P30,000 a kilometer.

In what was dubbed as the Kabalikat PALMA Infrastructure Project, the member LGUs of the PALMA alliance pooled their infrastructure equipments, machinery, personnel and expertise to collectively work on road building projects in the member towns. PALMA is an acronym for the names of the five municipalities: Pigcawayan, Alamada, Libungan, Midsayap, and Aleosan. They managed to form two fleets; each consisting of a bulldozer, a grader, three to four dump trucks and a road compacter. With two fleets at their command, the alliance was able to expedite road rehabilitation and covered more areas in less time. The host municipality or barangay would pay only for the fuel of the equipment and a labor fee of P200 each for the workers. This is translated into sizeable savings for the members of the alliance.
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Water Levy for Watershed Development
San Carlos City, Negros Occidental
These days, clean water is becoming more expensive than fuel; a situation brought about by the pollution and degradation of watershed areas. And if something is not done to reverse the trend, clean water could soon become scarce. But the rehabilitation of watershed areas is also costly, and raising funds could prove difficult. Then again, it may not be as difficult if the whole community pitches in as demonstrated by the San Carlos City government and its residents.

Large portions of San Carlos City in Negros Occidental are critical watersheds which cover 5,017 hectares. These are the main water sources that supply both domestic and agricultural consumers in and around the city. To address denudation of the watershed areas, the city government designed a Watershed Development and Rehabilitation Project using an innovative financing scheme to rehabilitate the denuded watersheds. The local government convinced its constituents to pay a water levy of seventy five centavos per cubic meter of water that they consume. The water levy generates 1.2 million pesos annually, which goes to a Trust Fund that is managed by the San Carlos Development Board. This Trust Fund, together with additional contributions by other organizations and stakeholders, guarantees resource availability for future use and expansion purposes and is being used as leverage to get additional funding. This unique system for raising financial resources for rehabilitation sets apart this local government initiative.
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Munggo: The Black Gold of San Mateo
San Mateo, Isabela
In the Municipality of San Mateo, the local government noticed a marked decline in the rice harvest yield, which was traced to the depletion of organic materials brought about by chemical intensive farming. Decreasing yields meant dwindling incomes for the farmers. To reverse the trend, the municipal government introduced a different cropping pattern involving rice and munggo (mung bean) production.

Locally called balatong, munggo is a drought-tolerant crop. The root system of this leguminous crop also restores the natural fertility of the soil as it is filled with nitrogen-fixing bacteria. This crop is also adaptable to various growing conditions and is easy to grow and maintain. It is best grown shortly before the onset of the summer season, when the soil still holds substantial moisture. Thus, it is the perfect candidate to plant in San Mateo’s rice fields after the rice harvest in March, when the rice lands are left idle to dry in the scorching months of summer. By planting munggo during these dry months, the rice farmers could earn additional income as well as produce additional food for their families.
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Special Citation

DBP Special Citation on Local Fiscal Management
Infanta, Quezon
The Municipality of Infanta in Quezon is recognized for its good fiscal performance compared with the other LGU finalists, considering the difficulties that the LGU encountered in managing its resources. Infanta has been challenged by physical disasters and to be able to accomplish so much deserves recognition.
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