BAYAWAN: CHARACTER FIRST!

Bayawan, a city in Negros Oriental, has an existing “Character First Bayawanihan” program, which became the SEA entrypoint to help transform the city into a sustainable integrated area development (SIAD) LGU.

Bayawan/Zarraga SIAD Meeting | Representatives from the City of Bayawan and The Municipality of Zarraga shared their experiences on Sustainable Integrated Area Development Program. Among those present were observers from the cities of Baguio, Manila, Cebu, Davao and Roxas.

Character First Bayawanihan is now institutionalized through a city ordinance and its own dedicated office and staff. SEA supports the program by conducting lectures and workshops for its members including the academe, public and private schools, the religious sector, business, youth, NGOs and POs, and government agencies.

SEA’s relationship with Bayawan goes back several years, with SEA activators, even before SEA was formalized. The continuing SIAD process engages government, business, and civil society in various initiatives, taking care mainly of the program’s software, through self mastery and other capability-building activities.