South Cotabato was declared the Top 9 Most Competitive province out of the 81 provinces in the country during the 10th Cities & Municipalities Competitiveness Index (CMCI) Summit held today, October 20, 2022, at the Philippine International Convention Center, Pasay City, Metro Manila.
The CMCI is one of the programs under the Department of Trade and Industry’s (DTI) Competitiveness Bureau which seeks to gauge the performances of the Local government units based on five (5) pillars of competitiveness which include the following: Resiliency, Economic Dynamism, Government Efficiency, and Infrastructure. Added pillar for this year is competitiveness in Innovation. The DTI enjoins LGUs to gather and submit data for their scores and ranks.
Aside from South Cotabato, other towns and cities which made it to the top under the Most Competitive on Resiliency include Koronadal City, 3rd place for Component City category; Polomolok, 10th place for 1st – 2nd class municipality category; and Norala, Top 5 for 3rd – 4th class municipality category. The province’s ranking was also based on the performances of its towns and component cities.
The CMCI which is now in its 10th year is celebrated with the theme: “A Decade of Excellence: Championing Innovation to Sustain Competitiveness” and seeks to level up and compete in the international arena.
