Bacolod City has earned the prestigious 2024 Seal of Good Local Governance (SGLG) award, along with 11 other cities and six municipalities in Negros Occidental.
The SGLG is the highest recognition given by the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) to outstanding Local Government Units (LGUs) across the Philippines.
Christian Nagaynay, DILG Bacolod City Director, confirmed yesterday that the awardees were announced on Wednesday, November 13. Bacolod City is among the awardees for this year and is the only highly urbanized city in Western Visayas to receive the SGLG.
“This is the highest honor an LGU can receive under the SGLG program. The recognition comes with an incentive fund, just like last year, which will be granted to the City of Bacolod,” Nagaynay said. He clarified that the exact amount of the incentive is still subject to deliberation by the City Council, as it will be proportionately distributed among the awardees across the country.
Nagaynay explained that the SGLG is a challenging process, as LGUs must meet the standards in 10 key governance areas: financial administration and sustainability, disaster preparedness, social protection and sensitivity, health compliance and responsiveness, sustainable education, business-friendliness and competitiveness, safety, peace and order, environmental management, tourism, heritage development, culture and the arts, and youth development.
“These 10 governance indicators were used as parameters for the 2024 SGLG. The city underwent two layers of validation: regional and national,” Nagaynay said.
He added that they are still awaiting final instructions from the DILG central office regarding the schedule for the formal awarding.
In addition to Bacolod City, the other cities in Negros Occidental that received the 2024 SGLG award are Bago, Cadiz, Escalante, Himamaylan, La Carlota, Sagay, San Carlos, Silay, Sipalay, Talisay, and Victorias.
The six municipalities that earned the award are E.B. Magalona, Hinigaran, Ilog, Isabela, La Castellana, and Manapla.
Upon hearing of the recognition, E.B. Magalona Mayor Marvin Malacon expressed pride in the achievement, stating, “This SGLG national award is a testament to our remarkable performance over the past eight years and our strong commitment to improving governance despite the challenges we face as a municipality.”
E.B. Magalona is one of only six municipalities in Negros Occidental (out of 19 towns) to win the award. Mayor Malacon, who is now in his third and final term, has served as mayor since July 2016.
The SGLG Awards were launched in 2014 and enacted into law in 2019. It is considered the country’s most comprehensive assessment of local governance, aimed at improving the performance of LGUs.
E.B. Magalona underwent the SGLG national validation on September 9 of this year at the Asenso Hall at the Public Plaza. (MAP)
