NINE cities and municipalities in Negros Occidental, including Bacolod City, bagged a total of 17 recognitions in this year’s Competitive Local Government Units (LGUs) Awards of the Regional Development Council (RDC) in Western Visayas.
RD-Western Visayas, in a resolution, said the award is based on the annual cities and municipalities competitiveness index (CMCI) survey.
The CMCI survey covers municipalities and cities in the region which submitted data to measure competitiveness based on indicators under the pillars of economic dynamism, government efficiency, infrastructure, and resiliency.
Of the nine recipient-LGUs in the province, the cities of Bacolod and Kabankalan received the highest number of awards with four each.
Bacolod was awarded first in resiliency, third in economic dynamism, and third in infrastructure. It was also adjudged second in the overall ranking under the city category.
Kabankalan bagged the third place in government efficiency, and second in both infrastructure and resiliency. Overall, the southern Negros city ranked first in the city category.
The cities of Bago and La Carlota each received two awards.
Bago is third in resiliency and the number one most improved city in the region.
La Carlota City, meanwhile, ranked first in government efficiency and third in overall ranking for city category.
Other winning LGUs include Toboso, first in resiliency under third to sixth class municipality category; Binalbagan, third in economic dynamism under first to second class municipality category; Cadiz City, second in government efficiency city category; Manapla, most improved first to second class municipality; and San Carlos, second most improved city.
These awards enabled Negros Occidental to be recognized as the third most competitive province in the region next to Guimaras and Iloilo.
In the national scale, RDC-Western Visayas said Negros Occidental ranks 53rd while the two other provinces placed 27th and 49th, respectively.
Provincial Planning and Development officer Ma. Lina Sanogal, who received the award in rites held at Iloilo Grand Hotel in Iloilo City Tuesday, said these recognitions show that LGUs in the province are really competitive in various areas of governance.
“We are happy that our LGUs performed well in the RDC’s cities and municipalities competitiveness index survey,” Sanogal said, adding that “we hope that the rest of our cities and towns will do better next year.”
Bacolod City Mayor Evelio Leonardia said, “We thank the RDC for recognizing our efforts to put Bacolod back on track and back on top.”
“These awards are very inspiring and this will surely encourage us to strive more for excellence because in the end, it will be our city and our people who will benefit from all these,” the mayor added.
Antique Governor Rhodora Cadiao, who chairs the RDC-Western Visayas, said the awards gave due recognition to LGUs in the region who topped the CY 2017 Cities and Municipalities Index Survey, under different categories, conducted by the National Competitiveness Council.