“The Cities and Municipalities Competitiveness Index (CMCI) is a vital management tool not only for the investors but also for the LGUs in assessing their level of competitiveness”, Provincial Director Romeo Castañaga says as he happily announces the commencement of the 2017 CMCI Survey spearheaded by the National Competitiveness Council through the Region 11 Competitiveness Committee and in coordination with the DTI-Davao del Norte Provincial Office.

The commencement which was highlighted during the CMCI Caravan conducted at the Golden Palace Hotel, Tagum City, resulted into a series of CMCI Orientation as requested by the local government units of Tagum, Panabo, Carmen and the Island Garden City of Samal.

“The overflowing requests from the LGUs through their respective Local Economic and Investment Promotion Officers (LEIPOs) have shown the desire of the LGUs to participate in the survey and improve their current competitiveness ranking. In fact, aside from Tagum City, two more LGUs have created their own technical working group to ensure provision of accurate and complete data for the CMCI,” Castañaga said.

During the CMCI orientations, Senior Trade and Industry Development Specialist Gelyn S. Llana emphasized the importance of the competitiveness index as a management tool for planning, legislation, and investment promotion of the local government, including the importance of the data provided on the investor’s decision on where to locate his/her business. Also, the 2017 survey indicators were discussed in details to ensure common understanding and accuracy of data that will be used.

To date, the office is preparing for its 4th leg of orientation which will be provided to LGU Asuncion on April 11.

The CMCI is an annual ranking of cities and municipalities based on the four convergent pillars namely, Economic Dynamism, Government Efficiency, Infrastructure, and Resiliency. Cities and municipalities that tops in every category are being awarded in July during the Regional Competitiveness Summit which is being attended by thousands of LGUs and private companies all over the country.