MAYOR Evelio Leonardia and Vice Mayor El Cid Familiaran will lead the Bacolod delegation that is attending the 6th Annual Competitiveness Summit and Awards ceremony at the Philippine International Convention Center (PICC) in Pasay City Thursday, August 16.

Undersecretary Rowel Barba of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) has informed Leonardia that the DTI, through its Competitiveness Bureau, will recognize the local government units (LGUs) with exemplary performance in the four pillars of the competitiveness index: Economic Dynamism, Government Efficiency, Infrastructure, and Resiliency.

This year, a total of 1,494 LGUs participated in this initiative, Barba said.

Awards will be given to LGUs in four categories: 3rd to 6th Class Municipalities, 1st to 2nd Class Municipalities, Component Cities, and Highly Urbanized Cities.

Awards for the Most Competitive Province and Most Improved City and Municipality will also be conferred this year, he added.

Under the present administration, Bacolod has been awarded the Top Philippine Model City in 2017. This year, it won first runner-up in the same competition, with a special recognition as the Most Business-Friendly City.

Also this year, Bacolod was considered one of the four fastest- growing cities in the Philippines for property searches, according to Lamudi, an online real estate marketplace with operations in 34 countries.

Moreover, Bacolod is one of the 5 cities in the Philippines that are included in the Tholons List of Top 100 “Super Cities” in 2017. Tholons International is the leader in global outsourcing locations rankings. (PR)