Best Practices - Valenzuela

Valenzuela City's Best Practices

Over the years, the City of Valenzuela has developed a great number of practices that significantly improve the lives of Valenzuelanos and elevate the City Government’s efficiency in delivering services. Some examples of these are the digitalization of government service processes through the 3S+ Electronic Terminal and the Paspas Permit System, the opening of parks, open spaces, and recreational facilities, the provision of free healthcare services, the development of the Disiplina Village housing and resettlement projects, the establishment of advanced learning facilities like the Valenzuela City Academic Center for Excellence (ValACE), the improvement and modernization of the transportation system, and the continuous advancement and refinement of various social services.

To maintain its fast progress, the City of Valenzuela continues to improve these measures, as well as create new ones, in line with Mayor WES Gatchalian’s Six Pillars of Good Governance: (1) Liveable City and Ecotourism, (2) Community Health and Wellness, (3) Housing and Resettlement, (4) Education, (5) Transportation, and (6) Social Services.

After all the hard work that went into developing its best practices, the City Government is also very glad to share them with other cities and municipalities, as can be seen in the frequent governance tours and benchmarking activities in the city, believing that they can transform not only the City of Valenzuela but the entire nation.

City Government at Work

The City Government of Valenzuela is committed to delivering services for the welfare of Valenzuelanos and the further development of the city.

Valenzuela City’s key advocacy on education is to make it available to everybody. Among the accomplishments of the city on education are the establishment of the prestigious Valenzuela City School of Mathematics and Science (ValMaSci); the Valenzuela Special Education (ValSPED) Center, the first LGU-funded SPED center in CAMANAVA; the Valenzuela City Academic Center for Excellence (ValACE); and the continuous enhancement of the Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Valenzuela (PLV) and the Valenzuela City Polytechnic College (ValPoly).

A comprehensive and multi-faceted feeding program also supplements the nutritional needs of Valenzuelano children to make them more attentive and competitive in school. For pre-school children, the City Social Welfare and Development Office (CSWDO) runs the "Chikiting Food Patrol," which provides nutritious meals for all learners in daycare centers. The subsequent level is the K to 6 City-wide Feeding Program, which is extended to undernourished children enrolled in Kindergarten to Grade 6 in the city’s public schools, as identified by the Department of Education (DepEd).

Increased local revenue is also a significant factor in providing more assistance for indigent Valenzuelano families. Through the collected city income, the local government is able to procure medicine, upgrade medical equipment for the city hospitals, and generate additional jobs for community health workers who educate the masses on population control and other pertinent health issues. The purchase of dialysis machines and CT scan facilities is also among the beneficial health investments made by the City Government for its constituents.

The local government also builds community health hubs, dubbed as "Barangay Health Stations," that are compliant with the standards set forth by the country’s Department of Health (DOH) and the World Health Organization (WHO).

Informal settlement is also being addressed in Valenzuela City. The construction of the different Disiplina Villages gives homes to informal settler families (ISFs), giving them the opportunity to have a safe living space while also clearing the city of illegal structures.

The city’s strong relationship with the business sector is one of the main ingredients for its robust economic growth year after year. Through the City Government’s initiatives to make the city business-friendly and liveable, more investors were attracted to capitalize on the locality’s potential.

As such, the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) and the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI) awarded Valenzuela City the Most Business-Friendly LGU Hall of Fame trophy for having won the Most Business-Friendly Highly Urbanized City award in the years 2012, 2014, and 2015. The city once again won the coveted award in the year 2019, after a three-year hiatus.

Valenzuela City has also consistently been among the top ranks in the National Competitiveness Council (NCC) Philippines’ Cities and Municipalities Competitiveness Index (CMCI) since 2014.
The generated jobs for the people also help eradicate the poverty issue. Over the relatively long haul, Public-Private Partnership (PPP) is now emerging as a new trend in good governance across the country. In fact, the DILG currently mandates the Public-Private Partnership for the People Initiative for Local Governments (LGU P4), adapting Valenzuela City’s PPP strategies, which other local governments may replicate in their respective localities to gain improved economic posture.

Valenzuela City started engaging in PPP when City Ordinance No. 140, Series of 2014 or the “Joint Venture Ordinance” was promulgated in July 2014. Two landmark LGU-initiated PPP projects were rolled out immediately after -- the construction and operation of the Valenzuela Town Center (VTC) inside the Valenzuela People’s Park and the rehabilitation of the 22-year old Marulas Public Market.

Disaster resilience in Valenzuela City, as represented by the Allied Local Evacuation and Emergency Response Teams (ALERT) Center and the Sentro ng Sama-samang Serbisyo (3S) Centers, is also among the City Government’s crucial and fundamental backbones toward stronger, more systematic, and more reliable working cooperative mechanisms for public service.

The ALERT Center is the brain of disaster preparedness and response in the city, while the 3S Centers are the peripheral nerves. These are integrated satellite government facilities with two primary purposes: governance and the pre-positioning of rescue equipment, personnel, and supplies.

The city has also started reclaiming open spaces for the people, turning them into greener public parks. These are not merely places to unwind; they also give Valenzuelanos the opportunity to nurture cohesive families. Some green mini-parks and children’s playgrounds can also be found inside the compound of 3S Centers and school facilities.
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A testament to good governance, all of these initiatives put Valenzuela City forward as an ideal place for living and doing business. Focusing on the city’s great potential, the City Government remains earnest and determined to accelerate its pace towards progress for every Valenzuelano.

Liveability

A Liveable Valenzuela City

Valenzuela is a liveable city. In 2014, the City Government’s design proposal for a liveable and disaster-resilient city was judged second best in the government/evacuation center category of the Liveable Cities Design Challenge.

ALERT Center

The local government inaugurated in May 2016 the Allied Local Evacuation and Emergency Response Teams (ALERT) Center, the city’s disaster response complex that sits just across the City Hall and houses the Valenzuela City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (VCDRRMO), the Valenzuela City Command, Control, and Communication Center (VCC3), the Relief Operations Unit of the City Social Welfare and Development Office (CSWDO), the Digital Communications Office, and a satellite Office of the Mayor.

Expected to be "the last building standing" in the aftermath of a disaster, the ALERT Center serves as the city’s emergency operations center, functioning round the clock. It is also regarded as the "brain" of the city’s disaster response infrastructure, with the 3S Centers as the "peripheral nerves.”

Located in strategic areas of the city, the 3S Centers, also called City Hall Annex buildings, are smaller buildings that provide quick response to emergencies in the communities with their own disaster response facilities. Each has a satellite office of the CSWDO, a health station, a day care center, a police community precinct, a fire substation, and a multi-purpose hall. Some 3S Centers also have Serbisyo Centers that include the satellite payment and service centers for the Local Civil Registry, the City Treasurer’s Office, and the Business Permit and Licensing Office.

Parks and Open Spaces

Parks and Open Spaces Another initiative of the City Government that adds to the liveability of Valenzuela City is the opening of public parks and open spaces. These destinations provide Valenzuelanos with pockets of green spaces and an escape from the hustle and bustle of urban living.

Polo Park
Barangay Poblacion

Valenzuela City People’s Park
Barangay Karuhatan

Valenzuela City Family Park

Barangay Karuhatan

Fatima Avenue
Barangay Marulas

Tagalag Fishing Village

Barangay Tagalag

Valenzuela City Sports Park
Barangay Wawang Pulo

Museo ni Dr. Pio Valenzuela
Barangay Pariancillo Villa

MMDA-Valenzuela City Friendship Parks
Barangay Bignay

Know more about the places to visit in Valenzuela City here: https://valenzuela.gov.ph/the_city/places

Museo ni Dr. Pio Valenzuela

Built on the same site where the residence of Dr. Pio Valenzuela once stood, the Museo depicts the hero’s life story through the various memorabilia displayed within its walls.

A reimagination of Dr. Valenzuela’s house based on the recollections of his grandson, Arch. Arturo Valenzuela, the museum allows visitors to relive the experiences of the man after whom Valenzuela City was named.

Housing and Resettlement

Disiplina Village

The City Government of Valenzuela envisions a city free from informal settler families (ISFs) living in danger zones. It is also committed in addressing poverty and restoring human dignity by implementing sustainable housing project which can provide safer and more decent homes and basic services to families living in danger zones in Valenzuela, thus the rise of Disiplina Village in Barangay Bignay and Ugong.

The onslaught of Typhoon Ondoy in September 2009 prompted the local government to ultimately solve the problem of ISFs in the city. As an immediate response, the local government called on the private sector to help in providing them with better and safer living condition in a community they can call their own. This has paved way for the construction of the only LGU-initiated housing project for the typhoon Ondoy victims, the Disiplina Village Ugong. The Valenzuela City Government donated the 1.9 hectare property while the private sector helped build the units. The implementation of this project has accorded some 890 ISFs with safer and more decent homes, quality basic services, values formation and other programs to restore human dignity.

Because the City Government of Valenzuela wanted to help more ISFs in the city, more Disiplina Village housing projects were later on built.

Valenzuela City takes pride in building the biggest in-city medium-rise housing project in the country, the Disiplina Village Bignay (DVB). With a total of 11 hectares, it can house 3,834 ISFs in the City. DVB is a comprehensive and completely integrated community to make sure that the families will be comfortable and safe. A Sentro ng Sama-Samang Serbisyo (3S Center), a satellite city hall, is found inside the village. It houses the Barangay Hall, the Barangay Health Station, a Police Community Precinct, a Fire Substation, and a Day Care Center (aside from other four day care centers scattered among the clusters of buildings). It is complete with basic education facilities with the inclusion of the Disiplina Village Bignay Elementary and High School. The Activity Center/Covered Court and the mini park can be found at its heart. It also has a Transport Terminal, public market, and a chapel are underway.

Disiplina Village Lingunan is the third Disiplina Village in Valenzuela City. The housing project is constructed on a 2.5-hectare lot.

True to its name, Disiplina Villages aim to instill the value of discipline among the families living there. The local government is well-aware that to make the project sustainable and long-lasting, the participation of each and every beneficiary is vital. The success of this program lies not only on the local government but also on the active participation of the private sector and especially the beneficiaries.