The Province of Iloilo is seeking to retain its status as a Philippine Commission on Women (PCW) Gender and Development Local Learning Hub as the agency evaluates the province’s Women Economic Empowerment (WEE) Program for possible recertification covering 2026 to 2029.
A PCW evaluation and monitoring team conducted onsite validation of the WEE Program, which has been the province’s showcase initiative for advancing women’s economic opportunities through partnerships and convergence with local governments and other stakeholders.
The province is also presenting its Purok Resilience Program (PRP) in Batad as another potential learning area, expanding its GAD initiatives into climate adaptive housing, disaster resilience, community safety and livelihood protection.
Iloilo was among the first five local government units in the country to receive GAD Local Learning Hub certification from PCW in 2015 to 2018.
It was recertified in 2018 to 2020 and again in 2023 to 2026 for sustaining and expanding the WEE Program.
The GAD Local Learning Hub program recognizes local governments that demonstrate effective gender mainstreaming and develop innovative practices that can be shared and replicated by other communities.
For the current recertification, the province must meet PCW’s requirements covering two equally weighted areas: its Gender Responsive LGU Assessment Tool results and the evaluation of a notable GAD program, service or facility.
The two criteria carry 50 percent each, with the LGU required to obtain a combined score of at least 80 percent.
The PCW validation includes document review, field assessment, site visits and evaluation of the program’s impact, functionality and potential for replication.
𝐁𝐚𝐭𝐚𝐝 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐦 𝐛𝐫𝐨𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐬 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐬
The inclusion of the Purok Resilience Program gives Iloilo another platform to demonstrate how gender responsive governance can be integrated into community development.
The PRP is a localized, climate adaptive socialized housing initiative that seeks to strengthen community resilience while addressing housing and livelihood vulnerabilities.
In Batad, the program links housing with disaster risk reduction, community safety and livelihood protection, providing a model of how GAD principles can be incorporated into local resilience efforts.
If recertified, Iloilo will continue to serve as a learning site for other local governments and institutions through knowledge sharing, peer learning, coaching and benchmarking activities.
The province’s experience in women’s economic empowerment and community resilience could provide other LGUs with practical models for integrating gender considerations into programs that directly affect livelihoods, housing and community safety.
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