BANGKO Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) assured the public that Baguio City’s banking system remains sound and stable as financial institutions continue to infuse investments here.
The BSP stated there were four additional banks included to the existing 82 bank branches operating in the city the previous year which shows the confidence of financial institutions on the sustained growth and development of the city through the past several years.
The BSP noted most of the automated teller machines installed by different banks are also based in the city making money transactions much easier for residents and visitors alike.
The Cities and Municipalities Competitiveness Index (CMCI) provided the picture of how Baguio City is performing in terms of economic dynamism, government efficiency, infrastructure and resiliency.
Last year, Baguio City was ranked 11 out of the 333 existing highly urbanized cities and No. 13 out of the 145 cities in the country.
For the social sector, the local government noted that poverty in the city improved between 2006 and 2012 or from 2.4 percent to 0.9 percent.
Poverty incidents in the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR) improved or from 17.5 percent in 2012 to 14.9 percent in 2015.
Baguio City continues to be the educational center north of Manila, a preferred choice for educational services by both local and foreign students.
For the past several years, Baguio city was awardee of the Consistent Regional Outstanding Winner on Nutrition which means that the city excelled in the implementation of sustainable and quality nutrition programs.
In addition, local officials claim peace and order is one of the major components of a robust economy with Baguio city being named among the 10 Safest Cities in Southeast Asia by number, a collaborative on-line database, ranking 6th place with a safety rating of 59.43 percent, with a very high rate of safety during daylight walks even when alone.
Baguio ranked higher than Cebu, Bali in Indonesia, Penang in Malaysia and Bangkok in Thailand.
“We are very optimistic that our socio-economic performance will be sustained and continue to prosper to contribute in achieving our country’s long-term vision or Ambisyon Natin 2050 to have a Matatag, Maginhawa at Panatag na Pamumuhay,” Mayor Mauricio Domogan stressed.
He pointed out the resiliency of residents to cope up with the fast changing times allowed the city to achieve its current position in local, regional, national and international competitiveness as shown by the recent awards reaped by the city, thus, the need for the public to continue striving for the best to help the city achieve greater heights in terms of economic growth in the future. (PR)