The City Tourism Operations Office (CTOO) is eyeing to upgrade Davao City’s Magsaysay Park, which includes the Kadayawan Cultural Village, to make it more inviting to the Dabawenyos and tourists.
The implementation of the upgrade would be through a grant that the CTOO received after winning second place at the Tourism Champions Challenge at the Philippine International Convention Center (PICC) on April 15, 2024 wherein Davao City presented the project entitled “Panunod Project: Preservation of the Unwavering Legacy of Cultural and Sustainable Tourism of the Davao City Kadayawan Village.”
The winning entry of the city will receive a grant worth P15 million and an additional P5 million from the Office of the President, which will be used to jumpstart the project.
The Kadayawan Cultural Village, which is located inside the Magsaysay Park, is an effort made by the CTOO to protect and preserve the Philippines’ beautiful and colorful culture for future generations.
The village, which is also known as a cultural peace hub, is where the cultural homes of the 11 tribes of Davao City, the Ata; Bagobo Klata; Bagobo Tagabawa; Iranun; Kagan; Maguindanawon; Maranao; Matigsalug; Obu Manuvu; Sama; and Tausug, are showcased.
Warren Quiñones of the planning section of the CTOO on Thursday said that the department will sign a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) with the city government of Davao, the Department of Tourism (DOT), and the Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority (TIEZA) for the granting of the fund.
“It’s still a long way because we are talking about infrastructure but having this grant is a big help to enhance and give life again to our Magsaysay Park.
“During the proposal submission. we were preparing for the Kadayawan and then we saw the value of celebrating Kadayawan at Magsaysay Park. I think that is also among the priorities that we should look into because it shows the culture and tourism. Its location is accessible to all Dabawenyos to visit,” Quiñones said during the I-Speak media forum.
Quiñones said the project involves putting up a pasalubong center, improving the public toilet, enhancing the landscape, and fixing some utilities of the park.
“Making it a cultural peace hub for Davao City and maybe for Mindanao,” he said.
He also said that CTOO already met the officials of the City Planning Development Office (CPDO) and the City Engineer’s Office (CEO) for the schedule of the project implementation, which is targeted to start this year.
