DTI commences competitiveness survey in DavNor

DAVAO DEL NORTE, February 23, 2016 - The Department of Trade and Industry – Davao del Norte Provincial Office started the implementation of 2016 Business Permits and Licensing System (BPLS) Validation and Cities and Municipalities Competitiveness Index (CMCI) Survey for all the 11 municipalities in the province.

The survey began last February 1, 2016 and will conclude on April 29, 2016.

The BPLS validation survey is conducted to assess the implementation of the streamlining program which the agency, in cooperation with DILG, launched last 2011 for the purpose of unifying and hastening the process of business permit issuance among the local government units.

Target respondents are the new and renewed business permit registrants of the LGU composed of single proprietors, partnerships, corporations and cooperatives. Survey questions will be largely based on the respondent’s BPLS customer experience.

On the other hand, the CMCI survey will focus on the local government units through its different offices and focal persons. The data gathered will be used for the annual competitiveness ranking of Philippine cities and municipalities developed by the National Competitiveness Council through the Regional Competitiveness Committees (RCCs) with the assistance of the United States Agency for International Development.

The ranking shall be based on the three pillars namely economic dynamism, government efficiency, and infrastructure. It shall also be classified according to the city/municipality’s category: highly urbanized cities, component cities, all cities, 1st and 2nd class municipalities, 3rd to 6th class municipalities, all municipalities, and all provinces. To qualify for the “Most Competitive Province”, the combined population of all participating LGUs under the province should constitute at least 60% of the total provincial population.

This index ranking can be used as a diagnostic tool by local government officials to assess the competitiveness of their city or municipality and identify areas for improvement and collaboration. These data can also provide insight for policy making, development planning and formulation of investment promotion strategies.

For this year, the province of Davao del Norte which previously ranked as 22nd most competitive province is eyeing for a significant improvement by garnering the support and commitment of its local government units for this endeavor.

To achieve this, DTI initiated a convergence of the LGU’s Business Permit and Licensing Officers (BPLOs) and Local Economic and Investment Promotion Officers (LEIPOs) at the DTI-Davao del Norte Provincial Office on February 15, 2016.

The award for most competitive province, city and municipality shall be given during the 2016 Regional Competitiveness Summit set to be held this July.

These surveys are also conducted simultaneously throughout the country. (Judecia H. Ponio, Information Officer-Designate DTI DavNor)