The Pambansang Pabahay para sa Pilipino Housing (4PH), a flagship program of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., has reached another milestone with over 100 memoranda of understanding with local government units, according to the Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development (DHSUD).
DHSUD Secretary Jose Rizalino Acuzar and Quezon Governor Angelina Tan led the signing of memoranda of understanding between the provincial government, including 31 municipalities, and the DHSUD.
The following day, Puerto Galera was added to the list after the signing between DHSUD and the local government. This brought to 123 the total number of MOUs signed with the LGUs since the 4PH program’s launch in September 2022.
The signing of MOU is the initial step in the 4PH program’s process of constructing and dispensing affordable, accessible, safe and resilient homes to targeted beneficiaries, especially the informal settler families and low-income earners.
“It warms my heart that LGU leaders throughout the country have thrown their support to the administration of the President through the DHSUD to truly provide our countrymen with homes they can safely and proudly live in,” Acuzar said.
“I thank the LGU chiefs who have partnered and will partner with us, hopefully soon. Thank you for embracing the administration’s vision, and know that by supporting the success of the 4PH, you are quashing the Philippines’ long-enduring pain that is the housing gap.
Let the MOUs we have signed represent our unwavering determination to uplift the Filipinos’ quality of living and put an end to homelessness and poverty,” he added.
He reassured the LGUs of the support the DHSUD would devote in the collaboration, saying “for our part, the Department reassures our LGUs that we will be particular in overseeing the completion and success of the housing projects that will be built and dedicated to our countrymen, mainly to those in the marginalized sector.
He stressed the housing programs would introduce more trade and economic activities in the LGUs, thus opening more job opportunities for residents.
The 4PH program aims to develop blighted lands that are near sources of livelihood to ensure the long-term economic vibrancy of the communities that would be built, he cited.
The number of MOUs to be signed between the Department and local chief executives is expected to increase as the program continues its on-the-ground rollout. The program aims to address the country’s housing needs pegged at more than 6.5 million units.
DHSUD received the support of various government financial institutions in the implementation of the 4PH with PagIBIG Fund’s allocation of P250 billion in the next six years.