(UPDATED 3/30/24) Every year, the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) recognizes outstanding local government units (LGU) that have shown good performance in multiple aspects of local governance.
These provinces, cities, and municipalities are conferred the Seal of Good Local Governance or SGLG.
First awarded in 2015, the SGLG evolved from DILG’s Seal of Good Housekeeping (SGH) which was conceptualized in 2010. (The SGH would become the Seal of Good Financial Housekeeping or SGFH starting in 2014.) The Seal was further institutionalized in 2019 upon the enactment of Republic Act 11292.
The SGLG is an annual award. However, it wasn’t conferred in 2020 and 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Here’s a breakdown of the number of of LGUs conferred the SGLG per year:
| Year | Provinces | Cities | Municipalities | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 41 | 28* | 185 | 254 |
| 2016 | 43 | 51 | 212 | 306 |
| 2017 | 29 | 61 | 359 | 449 |
| 2018 | 17 | 39 | 207 | 263 |
| 2019 | 17 | 57 | 306 | 380 |
| 2022 | 18 | 60 | 274 | 352 |
| 2023 | 28 | 64** | 401 | 493 |
* Excludes San Pedro City, Laguna. The DILG 2015 SGLG report included San Pedro among the municipalities, despite its cityhood already ratified in December 2013.
** Excludes Baliuag City, Bulacan and Carmona City, Cavite. The DILG 2023 SGLG report included the two among the municipalities; Baliuag’s cityhood was ratified in December 2022, and Carmona’s cityhood followed in July 2023.
(Click the links on this line for a searchable table of provinces and of cities/municipalities that have been awarded the SGLG.)
Recipients of the Seal obtain access to the SGLG Incentive Fund “to finance local development initiatives in furtherance of national goals and strategic thrusts.” Section 12 of RA 11292 states the guidelines in the usage of this fund. (Before this law, the grant was called the Performance Challenge Fund or PCF.)
So far, 66 provinces, 114 cities (as of 2023), and 741 municipalities have received the Seal of Good Local Governance at least once. This means, 81% of provinces, 77% of cities, and 50% of towns have passed at least once since 2015.
The map below shows the all-time provincial recipients of the SGLG. In all historical maps in this story, the darker the shade, the more times an LGU has won the Seal. (Click here for the interactive version.)
You may also swipe right to see only the 2023 recipients.
Four provinces have won the SGLG seven times, or every year so far: Isabela, Quirino, Bulacan, and Aklan. Five have obtained the Seal six times: Ilocos Sur, Pangasinan, Bataan, Tarlac, and Iloilo.
Five-time winners so far are Laguna and Davao del Norte.
Then, here’s a map of the all-time city and municipal SGLG awardees. (Click here for the interactive version.) Swipe right to see only the 2023 winners.
So far, 8 cities and 10 towns have consistently won the SGLG every year. The list includes the cities of Caloocan, Mandaluyong, Balanga, Mabalacat, Bacoor, Carmona, San Pedro, and San Carlos (Negros Occidental). Meanwhile, the 10 municipalities with the maximum 7-win streaks are:
- San Juan, Abra
- Caoayan, Ilocos Sur
- Alcala, Pangasinan
- San Mateo, Isabela
- Saguday, Quirino
- Plaridel, Bulacan
- Floridablanca, Pampanga
- Victoria, Tarlac
- Barugo, Leyte
- Kapatagan, Lanao del Norte
12 cities and 38 municipalities have earned the Seal six times. Meantime, 11 cities and 69 towns have been conferred the award five times.
Historically, all 6 towns in Quirino, all 11 LGUs in Davao Oriental, all 18 LGUs in Tarlac, and all 20 LGUs in La Union have been SGLG recipients at least once. In 2023, though, only 3 of the LGUs in Quirino, 6 in Davao Oriental, and 16 each in Tarlac and in La Union won.
Other provinces with historically prolific LGUs (counts per province include independent cities) are:
- At least 90% of LGUs – Pampanga, Isabela, Bataan
- At least 80% – Pangasinan, Apayao, Sarangani, Dinagat Islands, Camiguin
- At least 70% – Ilocos Sur, Cavite, Ilocos Norte, Misamis Occidental, Aurora, Southern Leyte, Antique, Nueva Ecija
Notably, Biliran (which has won the SGLG twice, in 2015 and 2016) finally had towns on the awardees list in 2023, after 3 earned the Seal. Before 2023, it was the only remaining province that had no winner from its component LGUs.
2023 SGLG highlights
In the 2023 SGLG, only 28 provinces, 64 cities, and 401 municipalities (which includes newly-ratified cities Baliuag in Bulacan and Carmona in Cavite) made the cut. However, it’s higher than the 18 provinces, 60 cities, and 274 towns that were awardees in 2022.
Among the provinces, Aurora, Guimaras, and Sarangani got the award for the first time. Thirteen retained their Seal from 2022, while the remaining 12 have earned it before but missed it in 2022. Northern Samar was back on the board after its inaugural award in 2015, the longest break in this batch.
On the other hand, 5 provinces that won the Seal in 2022 didn’t make the list in 2023: Pangasinan (which broke its streak stretching from the very first SGLG), Rizal, Antique, Davao Oriental, and Agusan del Norte.
Seven cities earned their first SGLG: Marikina City and Valenzuela City in Metro Manila, Cadiz City in Negros Occidental, Bogo City in Cebu, Koronadal City in South Cotabato, Cagayan de Oro City, and Isabela City.
A total of 84 towns also were first-time recipients, among them Marilao (Bulacan), and provincial capitals Iba (Zambales) and Catarman (Northern Samar).
Meanwhile, 45 cities and 212 municipalities (which includes Baliuag and Carmona) retained their Seal from 2022. The remaining 12 cities and 105 towns that won in 2023 were returning winners, or those that failed to make the 2022 list.
Sadly, 15 cities and 62 towns that earned the SGLG in 2022 weren’t able to do so again in 2023.
Bataan has the highest share of cities/towns that passed the SGLG in 2023, with 11 of 12 (92%) making the cut. (The only town not on the list: Limay.) It is followed by Tarlac (16 of 18, or 89%), and La Union (16 of 20, or 80%).
SGLG assessment areas
The SGLG assessment for all LGUs cover 10 governance areas, with minimum requirements listed in each:
- Financial Administration and Sustainability
- Disaster Preparedness
- Social Protection and Sensitivity
- Business-Friendliness and Competitiveness
- Safety, Peace, and Order
- Environmental Management
- Tourism, Heritage Development, Culture, and Arts
- Health Compliance and Responsiveness
- Sustainable Education
- Youth Development
An LGU must pass in all 10 areas to qualify for the Seal. In addition, a province would qualify for the Seal if at least 10% of its component cities and municipalities also pass the SGLG assessment.
Acceptability tests also include reports on casualties and damage during disasters, and “institutional integrity”, that is, the LGU or its officials “should not have been found guilty in corruption cases.” The participation of 50% of component barangays in the upcoming SGLG for barangays is also included as an acceptability test for cities and towns.
The qualification criteria for the Seal has changed over time.
In the first two years of the SGLG, there were only 6 assessment areas (the first 6 listed above), and the “3+1 principle” was applied: the LGUs must pass all 3 “core areas” (Financial Administration which was then Good Financial Housekeeping, Disaster Preparedness, and Social Protection) and at least 1 of the remaining 3 “essential areas.”
In 2017, the Tourism aspect was first included as an “essential area” and the Peace and Order aspect was upgraded to a “core area,” making the qualification rule a “4+1 principle.”
In 2018, the “all-in principle” was first used: LGUs must now pass in all assessment areas. The “10% of component cities and municipalities” rule for provinces was also introduced that year. A 2020 study by the Philippine Institute for Development Study (PIDS) on the PCF and the SGLG surmised that this stricter criteria may have contributed to the decrease of recipients for that year.
The health, sustainable education, and youth development areas were added in 2022.
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