Gov Joey Salceda presenting the Albay Health Program

Albay wins Galing Pook Award for comprehensive health plan by Florencio P. Narito

LEGAZPI CITY—The Provincial Government of Albay headed by Gov. Joey Sarte Salceda, has won its second Galing Pook Award for the successful implementation of its health program under the Millennium Development Goal.

Dr. Luis Mendoza Provincial Health Officer, said Albay was one of the most outstanding local government units chosen by the Galing Pook Foundation to receive P 50,000 plus plaque of recognition.

Mendoza said the awarding ceremony will be held on the fourth week of January, 2012 in Malacañang. He said there were 18 finalists but the screening committee chose 10 awardees from the different local government units.

“The Galing Pook Award is the first one for our office,” Mendoza told Manila Standard. “Our entry was entitled ‘Albay health strategy toward the early achievement of the Millennium Development Goal.”

He said the entry centered on three Millennium Development Goals: Goal 4 for child health; Goal 5 for maternal health; and Goal 6, for eradication of malaria, TB, and HIV-AIDS.

“We have achieved these MDG earlier than 2015, the target date,” he said. “We have reduced infant or under 5 mortality and we have lowered the maternal mortality.” 

Governor Salceda served as presentor during the final evaluation in Manila..

The first Galing Pook Award for Albay was won in 2008 but the awarding ceremony was held in Malacañan Palace in January 2009. The winning entry was on Disaster Risk Reduction Management.

According to Abundio Nuñez Jr, assistant executive officer of Cedric Daep, chief of the Albay Public Safety and Emergency Management Office, about 100 entries have signed up including Albay province.

Because of the pioneering efforts of Gov. Salceda and his staff to institutionalize Disaster Risk Reduction Management, Congress passed a bill now known as RA 10121 or the Disaster Risk Reduction Management Act based on the Albay experience.

The Province of Albay had also won the KALASAG Award for disaster preparedness. KALASAG stands for “Kalamidad at Sakuna Labanan, Sariling Galing ang Kaligtasan”.

Published in Manila Standard Dec. 15, 2011