Chief executives of local governments; Bureau of Local Government Finance Executive Director Consolacion Agcaoili; BLGF Central and Regional officials; local treasurers and assessors; key stakeholders and development partners: Magandang hapon po sa inyong lahat.

First of all, let me congratulate the BLGF family on 37 years of raising the bar for local government finance to deliver the best public service for Filipinos.

Today, the fruits of your labor are on full display as we recognize our top-performing LGUs. And I am proud to learn that my province of Batangas, and four of its cities are among the awardees today.

Bigyan po natin ng masigabong palakpakan ang lahat ng ating mga magagaling at masisipag na LGUs. Saludo po ako sa inyong dedikasyon at pagsisikap na patuloy na iangat ang antas ng serbisyo para sa ating mga kababayan.

I am confident that each of you will become a shining example for all other LGUs, inspiring them to strive harder and deliver better.

For the success of every LGU translates into prosperity for the people you serve. Sa inyo po nakasalalay ang pag-angat ng bawat bayan at ang magandang kinabukasan ng bawat Pilipino.

Because you are the frontline institutions that create opportunities, uplift lives, and directly transform our communities. You are the true drivers of inclusive economic growth for our nation.

And it is the job of the DOF, through the BLGF, to help you succeed in your noble mission. It is our duty to assist you build up your financial capacity to provide better services, unleash your full potential, attain fiscal sustainability, and contribute to national growth.

Dahil kapag matatag ang financial performance ng ating mga lokal na pamahalaan, mas mabilis ang pagdaloy ng serbisyo, mas dadami ang mga negosyo, mas maraming trabaho ang malilikha, at may dagdag na kita ang bawat Pilipino.

And I am very pleased to hear that through the BLGF’s initiatives for the past years, more LGUs outside the National Capital Region are now joining the billionaire’s row in terms of locally sourced revenues. In fact, they nearly doubled from 2019.

What is even more remarkable is that we are seeing the highest growth rates in locally sourced revenues from our municipalities.

This is a powerful testament to the improving governance, expanding financial capacity, and growing fiscal independence of our LGUs nationwide.

Ibig sabihin rin po nito, mas nagiging inklusibo na ang pag-unlad ng ating ekonomiya, at mas maraming Pilipino mula sa iba’t ibang sulok ng bansa ang nakikinabang sa patuloy na progreso.

That is exactly our goal: ang tuluyan nating maiangat ang bawat rehiyon, siyudad, komunidad, at pamilyang Pilipino mula sa kahirapan.

Because this is how we will break the cycle of poverty—by empowering every LGU to strengthen their local coffers and drive their own growth in the most effective way possible.

To help accelerate the achievement of this shared goal, we are rolling out the Local Governance Reform Project.

This will harmonize our policy direction to enhance local fiscal management, particularly in the valuation and appraisal of real properties through digitalization.

This will ensure the smooth implementation of the Real Property Valuation and Assessment Reform Act, which will establish a just, equitable, and efficient real property valuation system in the country. By doing so, we aim to attract more investments and boost local revenues.

And to hit the ground running, a Data Sharing Agreement between relevant government offices and LGUs was just signed today to develop the Real Property Information System and all other digitalization systems under the Local Governance Reform Project.

This agreement lays the groundwork for more collaborations to build a robust and comprehensive database system, making it easier and more efficient for our people and businesses to engage with our LGUs.

This will also strengthen data-sharing across government agencies, particularly with the Bureau of Internal Revenue, to enhance tax administration and boost revenue collection.

Beyond these, the BLGF is launching more projects that will strengthen transparency in governance and transform our LGUs into digitally powered institutions.

Asahan po ninyo ang mabilis na pagpapatupad sa mga programang ito para gawing mas klaro, mas simple, at mas moderno ang pamamalakad ng ating gobyerno.

And we are not just modernizing our systems alone. We are also investing heavily in training programs that will upgrade the competencies of our fiscal guardians—our local government treasurers and assessors.

Makakaasa po kayo na nandito ang DOF at ang BLGF—laging handang umalalay sa ating mga LGUs.

We will be with you every step of the way to ensure that you rise higher, grow faster, and deliver the fruits of Bagong Pilipinas to every Filipino in your constituencies.

Muli, congratulations to the BLGF family and to all of our awardees. Mabuhay po kayong lahat, at mabuhay ang Bagong Pilipinas.