LOCAL GOOD GOVERNANCE: GOOD GOVERNANCE PRACTICES AND

INITIATIVES TOWARD POVERTY ALLEVIATION IN BARANGAY

DAGAT-KIDAVAO DURING THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC

JEANY BABE S. SOLER

UNDERGRADUATE THESIS SUBMITTED TO THE FACULTY OF THE

DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL SCIENCES.
COLLEGE OF ARTS AND SCIENCES.
CENTRAL MINDANAO UNIVERSITY, IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE
REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE

BACHELOR OF ARTS IN POLITICAL SCIENCE

JANUARY 2023
 CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION

"Governance" is not a brand-new idea. It predates human civilization.

Simply put, "governance" refers to the processes involved in making decisions
and carrying them out or not. Corporate governance, international
governance, national governance, and local governance are just a few of the
contexts in which the word "governance" can be used. In recent times, the
words "governance" and "good governance" have appeared more frequently
in development literature.
In 2001 UNDP described good governance as a governing system that
is responsive, capable, inclusive, and transparent . Good Governance works
towards the development of accountable institutions and effective, agile and
transparent governance mechanisms that can cope with the complex
challenges of democracy in the 21st century. work supports the core
capacities for institutional reform and strengthening, strongly emphasizes
transparency and public dialogue, and strives to build innovation into
mainstream policy (UNDP,2022). It assures that corruption is minimized, the
views of minorities are taken into account and that the voices of the most
vulnerable in society are heard in decision-making. It is also responsive to the
present and future needs of society (UNESCAP,N.D).
An essential actor in governance is the government. Depending on the
level of government being discussed, there are different other actors involved
in governance. Other actors in rural areas might include powerful landowners,
groups of small-scale farmers, cooperatives, NGOs, research organizations,
religious figures, financial institutions, political parties, the military, etc.
(UNESCAP,N.D).
Rural governance is a byproduct of modern influences and the specific
rural region's economic, social, and political history. Locally motivated
governance practices frequently coexist with influences from higher
administrative tiers' regulatory decisions. Realizing rights, ensuring that no
one is left behind, and ensuring the sustainability of rural development
programs all depend on effective rural governance. To maintain investments
in health, education, or natural resource management in rural areas, there
must be effective rural governance.
Rural Poverty remains an overwhelmingly common phenomenon.
Rural poverty has historically been higher than urban poverty, and this
disparity, although shrinking, has persisted into 2021. Beyond a higher
absolute level of poverty, rural poverty is far more persistent than urban
poverty. Four out of every five people living in extreme poverty in the world
live in rural areas. The incidence of poverty in rural areas is four times that of
urban areas (Rural Poverty Analysis, 2019). Yet it doesn't get the attention it
needs, and in many places, good rural governance is a far-off dream.
In particular, more than half of Dagat-Kidavao (one of the many rural
barangay in Valencia CIty, Bukidnon) no. of households is under the poverty
threshold. According to the latest CBMS Census (2015-2019) from the Local
Government Unit of Valencia City, Bukidnon, Dagat-Kidavao has a total
population of 4,997 with a number of 1,255 households, and 68.29% of its
proportion had an income below the poverty threshold. The Barangay is
approximately 22 kilometers away from the heart of the City, with limited
transportation usually through a single motorcycle and rarely with a jeepney.
Dagat-Kidavao shares a border with barangay Paitan, which is also a rural
barangay from the municipality of Quezon. Its rurality and poverty incidence is
what interests the researcher to determine the good governance practices of
Bagarangay Dagat-Kidavao local government for poverty reduction during the
Covid-19 pandemic in the last three years, 2019 to 2022. Focusing on the
seven norms of good urban governance provided by the UN-Habitat and the
initiatives and challenges and proposed solutions by the local government of
Barangay Dagat-Kidavao, Valencia City , Bukidnon, during the Covid-19
pandemic. Putting in mind that measuring progress in rural governance
reforms needs to go beyond quantitative indicators. Governance reforms are
about altering the relations between citizens and service providers and
between the electorate and politicians
1.1. Statement of the Problem
 The study is geared to determine the good governance practices and
initiatives by the local government for poverty reduction during the Covid-19
pandemic.
In line with the mentioned issue, this study aims to answer the following
questions:

1. What is the “Rural Poverty Profile” of Barangay Dagat-Kidavao?

2. What are the Good Governance practices of barangay Dagat-Kidavao for

poverty alleviation amidst the Covid-19 pandemic, in terms of the seven
(7) Norms of Good Governance:

a. Sustainability

b. Decentralization and Subsidiarity

c. Equity

d. Efficiency

e. Transparency and accountability

f. Civic Engagement and Citizenship

g. Security

3. What are the initiatives of the local government of Barangay

Dagat-Kidavao in reducing poverty incidence during the COVID-19
pandemic?

4. What are the challenges and proposed solutions (short term & long term)
of the local government of Barangay Dagat-Kidavao in reducing poverty
incidence?

1.2. Objective of the Study

The study aims to determine the good governance practices and
initiatives by the local government for poverty reduction during the Covid-19
pandemic.
In line with this the study aims to:

1. Determine the “Rural Poverty Profile” of Barangay Dagat-Kidavao.

2. To determine the Good Governance practices of Barangay Dagat-Kidavao
for poverty alleviation amidst the Covid-19 pandemic, in terms of the seven
(7) Norms of Good Governance:

a. Sustainability

b. Decentralization and Subsidiarity

c. Equity

d. Efficiency

e. Transparency and accountability

f. Civic Engagement and Citizenship

g. Security

3. To list the initiatives of the local government of Barangay Dagat-Kidavao

in reducing poverty incidence during the COVID-19 pandemic.

4. To determine the different challenges and proposed solutions (short term

& long term) of the local government of Barangay Dagat-Kidavao in
reducing poverty incidence.

1.3. Significance of the Study

This study endeavor will benefit the following entities:

Students.Students, particularly those studying politics, will be able to

recognize the good governance techniques required to reduce poverty
according to the study's findings.

Academe. The study's findings will give people the information they
need to conduct further research and provide education on good governance
approaches for reducing poverty.

General Public. The findings will enable citizens to demand

accountability and inclusive policies from their government for more effective
and efficient delivery of public services, enabling them to become more
engaged and aware of the significance of good urban governance in reducing
poverty and subsistence incidence.
 Government. Good governance key principle is to bring more people
out of the poverty threshold. Hence, this study will provide local government
officials with essential information imperative to improving governance in rural
areas for effective poverty alleviation.

Future Researchers.The research's findings or conclusions may aid

those who are researching the importance of good governance practices in
poverty alleviation, particularly in rural areas.

1.4. Scope and Delimitation

The general intent of the study is to determine the good governance

practices for poverty reduction of Barangay Dagat-Kidavao, by evaluating
their extent of compliance with the mandate of the UN-Habitat Principles of
Good Urban Governance. The enactment of the Local Government Code of
1991 precipitated the devolution of responsibilities, authorities, and resources
for urban service delivery to local government units, and this includes
facilitating the implementation of policies for reducing poverty. Hence, the
study respondent will be the local officials on the said barangay.

According to the United Nations Development Project (2020), the

COVID-19 pandemic reversed the significant gains made by the government
in reducing poverty. Hence, the researcher set to determine the good
governance practices of Bagarangay Dagat-Kidavao local government for
poverty reduction during the Covid-19 pandemic in the last three years, 2019
to 2022. Furthermore, the parameter of this study will focus on the seven
norms of good urban governance provided by the UN-Habitat and the
initiatives and challenges and proposed solutions by the local government of
Barangay Dagat-Kidavao, Valencia City , Bukidnon, during the Covid-19
pandemic.

1.5. Conceptual Framework of the Study

 Figure 1. The association of the independent, moderating, and dependent
variable of the study.

The study is anchored on seven norms of good urban governance

provided by the UN-Habitat, the initiatives, and challenges and proposed
solutions by the local government of Barangay Dagat-Kidavao during the
Covid-19 pandemic.

The independent variable is the good governance practices for poverty

alleviation by the local government of Barangay Dagat-Kidavao, Valencia city,
Bukidnon, . The dependent variable includes the extent of compliance with
the mandate of the UN-Habitat Principles towards Good Urban Governance
Practices for Poverty Reduction: (1) sustainability in all dimensions of urban
development; (2) subsidiarity of authority and resources to the closest
appropriate level; (3) equity of access to decision-making processes and the
basic necessities of urban life; (4) efficiency in the delivery of public services
and in promoting local economic development; (5) transparency and
accountability of decision-makers and all stakeholders; (6) civic engagement
and citizenship; (7) security of individuals and their living environment, the
initiatives taken and challenges encountered and their proposed solutions
(Short & long term). The COVID-19 pandemic is taken as the moderating
variable which influences the effect of the independent variable on the
dependent variable.

1.6. Definition of Terms

Efficiency. The sound and cost-effective management of revenue sources

and expenditures, administration and delivery of services, and enablement,
based on comparative advantage, of government, private sector and
communities to contribute to the urban economy (UN-Habitat, 2002).

Equity. It is achieved when there is sharing of power in the access to and use
of resources; everyone has equitable access to nutrition, education,
employment and livelihood, shelter, health care, safe drinking water, sanitation
and other basic services, regardless of status, age, religion or ethnicity, or
condition; and when women and men participate as equals in resource
allocation, priority-setting, and urban-decision-making process (UN-Habitat,
2002).

Civic Engagement and Citizenship. It constitutes the active contribution of

citizens to the common good and empowered or effective participation of
citizens in decision-making processes. It also connotes the recognition of and
support for the poor as civic capital (UN-Habitat, 2002).

Decentralization and Subsidiarity. It refers to the allocation of the

responsibility for service provision at the closest appropriate level consistent
with efficient and cost-effective delivery of services (UN-Habitat, 2002).

Governance. The exercise of political, economic and administrative authority

to manage a nation's affairs. It is the complex mechanisms, processes,
relationships and institutions through which citizens and groups articulate their
interests, exercise their rights and obligations and mediate their differences.
Governance encompasses every institution and organization in the society,
from the family to the state and embraces all methods - good and bad - that
societies use to distribute power and manage public resources and problems .

Good Governance. It refers to the governing systems that are responsive,

capable, inclusive, and transparent (UNDP, 2001).

Good Rural Governance. It refers to the whole range of regulations, no

matter if they are executed by the government, the private sector or civil
society. The term ‘governance’ denotes that regulation has moved beyond the
realm of the state and is now also an effect of private actors, profit or
not-for-profit oriented. Rural governance is a product of contemporary
influences and the economic, social, and political history of a particular rural
region. It is often a mix between locally driven governance processes and
influences from regulatory decisions taken by administrative tiers higher up
(INTERNATIONAL PLATFORM, 2019).

Poverty. It exists when people fall short of a level of economic welfare

deemed to constitute a reasonable minimum, in absolute sense or by the
standards of a specific society (Lipton et al., 1995).

Rural Poverty. Given that there is a lack of international consensus on the

definition of "rural", most assessments of rural poverty simply rely on the
definitions used by the different countries. Some countries use population
density and distance from densely populated areas as defining factors of
rurality. Some countries use definitions of rurality based on other factors, such
as administrative classifications generated in the past or the share of
agricultural employment in total employment (RURAL POVERTY
ANALYSIS,2019).

Sustainability. It constitutes the clear commitment towards urban poverty

reduction and balanced social, economic and environmental needs of the
present and future generation (UN-Habitat, 2002).
Security. It constitutes the inalienable right to life, liberty, the security of
person, freedom from persecution, forced evictions, and security of tenure
(UN-Habitat, 2002).

Transparency and Accountability. It constitutes access of citizens to

information, application of laws and public policies in a transparent and
accountable manner, and high standards of professional and personal
integrity of elected and appointed officials. It is a fundamental tenet that
ensures corruption would not take place as it deepens urban poverty
(UN-Habitat, 2002).