The Provincial Government of Davao del Norte, through the PADO Cooperative and Investment Development Division (CIDD), partnered with the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Provincial Office spearheaded the assessment of the Cities and Municipalities Competitiveness Index (CMCI) on May 5, 2023. The evaluation took place at the Municipal Hall of Carmen, where the Local Economic Development and Investment Promotion Officers (LEDIPOs) and representatives from respective LGUs and the analyst from DTI convened.

The activity was led by Ms. Joevynar M. Miedes, the Local Economic Development and Investment Promotion Officer-Designate of Davao del Norte, and Mr. Elycer Remigio, the Trade-Industry Development Analyst of DTI-Provincial Office.

The primary objective of the assessment was to evaluate the progress made by each component city and municipality regarding their CMCI submission. The CMCI serves as a vital tool for measuring the competitiveness of cities and municipalities throughout the Philippines. It is based on five key pillars of competitiveness: economic dynamism, government efficiency, infrastructure, resilience, and innovation. The provincial rankings are determined by calculating the population and income-weighted averages of the overall scores achieved by cities and municipalities within a province.

The gathering aimed to ensure that all 11 Local Government Units (LGUs) in Davao del Norte were well-prepared and had successfully submitted accurate data for each CMCI pillar through the CMCI Portal. Furthermore, the team emphasized the importance of fostering close coordination between the Local Economic Development and Investment Promotion Offices (LEDIPOs) and the Business Permit and Licensing Offices (BPLOs) to enhance and further promote economic development in Davao del Norte.

The next step in the CMCI assessment process is the Regional CMCI Validation, scheduled to take place on June 15–16, 2023.