Foundation announces 2023 Galing Pook Awards finalists

The Galing Pook Foundation has announced the 17 finalists for the 2023 Galing Pook Awards.

From a pool of 166 entries submitted by various local governments, the foundation said the finalists have shown remarkable dedication in advancing local governance innovations aimed at strengthening resilient communities.

The 17 finalists for the 2023 Galing Pook Awards are the following:

• Bago City, Negros Occidental: “Reviving the Majestic Diversity of Bago Watershed” (Ridge to Reef Environmental Management/ Integrated Ecosystem Management Approach) 
• Barangay Taloot, Argao, Cebu: Barangay Taloot Community-Based Integrated Approach
• Bataan Province: 1Bataan Seal of Healthy Barangay
• Bayawan City, Negros Oriental: Fish From The Mountains: Bayawan Inland Aquaculture
• Cavite Province: LINKod Beyond Bars: An ICT-based Social Inclusion Program of Cavite Provincial Jail
• Davao Oriental Province: Happy Home
• Del Carmen, Surigao del Norte: Seal of Health Governance: Local Health Leadership Approach as Response from Pandemic to Super Typhoon “Odette”
• General Santos City: Shari’a Atas Bitiara
• Iloilo City: Iloilo City Sports Academy (ICSA): A Grassroots Sports Program for the Ilonggo Youth
• Iloilo Province: Mobilizing Communities through People-Centered Zero Open Defecation Movement Towards Sustainable Sanitation in the Province of Iloilo
• Ligao City, Albay: Integrated Coastal Resource Management Program
• Makati City: Virtual Queuing Management System
• Mexico, Pampanga: Sustaining an LGU-Funded Community Hospital with a Hemodialysis Center [The Experience of Mexico, Pampanga after the 1991 Devolution]
• Ormoc City, Leyte: Saving Kan: A Love Story in Ormoc Bay (Marine Mammal and Reptile Rehabilitation Center)
• Pasig City: Pasig City Prehospital Care and Emergency Medical Services Medical Control Program
• Quezon City: iRISE UP (Intelligent, Resilient, and Integrated Systems for the Urban Population)
• Quezon City: Quezon City Birth Registration Online (QC BRO): Online Birth Registration Portal of the Quezon City Civil Registry Department 

The dominant themes of the 2023 Galing Pook Awards are agriculture, food security, environment, climate change adaptation, health, and social welfare.

“These programs, shaped by the pressing challenges of our era, such as climate change and pandemic recovery, showcase the remarkable evolution and resilience of local governance over 30 years, symbolizing our unwavering dedication to building a more sustainable and resilient future,” said Galing Pook Chairperson Mel Senen Sarmiento.

The final panel presentation and interview are scheduled this October 11, and Interior Secretary Benhur Abalos will chair the 2023 Galing Pook Awards final board of judges.

The awarding ceremony is scheduled for October 12 to recognize the top 10 outstanding local governance programs.

The Galing Pook Awards is being organized by the foundation in partnership with the Department of the Interior and Local Government-Local Government Academy and SM Prime Holdings Incorporated. – Rappler.com