• GILBERT P. BAYORAN
A housing infrastructure project with an estimated value of P4 billion will soon rise in Himamaylan City, Negros Occidental, following the signing of a memorandum of understanding between the city government, represented by Mayor Raymund Tongson, and the Department of Human Settlement and Urban Development on October 18 in Dilliman, Quezon City.
The Pambansang Pabahay para sa Pilipino Housing (4PH) Program of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., which now has Himamaylan City as a participant, aims to establish livable communities by providing decent housing for the Filipino people.
This collaboration, according to Mayor Tongson, is expected not only to improve living conditions, but also stimulate economic growth and development in Himamaylan, setting a promising example for addressing housing challenges nationwide.
The first phase of the project is set to bring substantial housing infrastructure to Himamaylan City, with an estimated cost of P4 billion, with construction targeted to start within the year, according to a statement issued by the city government.
The government is eyeing to complete at least 100,000 constructed housing units under the 4PH program by next year, according to the DHSUD.
The cities of Bacolod and Victorias in Negros Occidental are also recipients of the 4PH program of the PBBM administration.
DHSUD Secretary Jose Acuzar expressed the department’s commitment to ensuring that the program benefits as many Himamaylanons as possible.
Acuzar also disclosed that the 4PH Program will contribute in maintaining economic growth and creating more resilient jobs.
“As we pursue the mission to build and dispense one million housing units per year, we are also espousing township development that will ensure sustainable co-existence of all elements and players in a housing community,” he said.
The DHSUD said the goal to establish livable communities is anchored on the country’s commitment to the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goal 11, which is to make cities and human settlements “inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable.”
To comply with the goal, the 4PH Program pursues innovative strategies to maximize the use of land resources such as vacant, idle, blighted and underutilized government and private-owned lands for housing and mixed-use development, the DHSUD added.
The program also targets to optimize land utilization, especially in highly urbanized and component cities, through prioritizing vertical housing and adopting township development models.*
