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Valenzuela is named after the surname of Pío Valenzuela, a physician and one of the leaders of the Katipunan. He was regarded as a member of the Katipunan triumvirate which started the Philippine Revolution against Spanish colonial authorities in 1896. He also served as the provisional chairman for the Katipunan.

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Valenzuela City is highlighted as its location in Metro Manila

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Valenzuela is a 1st class highly urbanized city in the National Capital Region of the Philippines. It is the 11th most populous city in the country and is located about 14 kilometres (8.7 mi) north of Manila.

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Based on the 2020 census, Valenzuela City has a total population of 714,978, the 7th most populous in the NCR and 13th in the Philippines. This is an increase of 7.8 percent from 575,356 people in 2010, at an annual growth rate of a 1.45%.

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Owing to the cross-migration of people across the country and its location as the northernmost point of Metro Manila, Valenzuela has developed into a multicultural metropolis. A former agricultural rural area, Valenzuela has grown into a major economic and industrial center of the Philippines when a large number of industries relocated to the central parts of the city.

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The city-wide poverty rate in Valenzuela city is 22% and about 13% of households are estimated to have insufficient income to satisfy basic food needs. The Philippines as a whole has a fairly high poverty rate with more than 16% of the population living below the poverty line.

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VALENZUELA CITY, THE PHILIPPINES

Valenzuela is one of the 16 peripheral cities that comprise the greater Manila metropolitan area, located about 15 km north of Manila City. Over the past five decades, the city has grown into a major industrial and economic base with a population of about 600,000. It is subdivided into 33 neighbourhoods (barangays). The city-wide poverty rate is 22% and about 13% of households are estimated to have insufficient income (< USD 120 per month) to satisfy basic food needs. The city government has received numerous awards for its employment and micro-entrepreneurship development programmes as well as timely health and social protection policies.

The first National Baseline Study on Violence Against Children (NBSVAC), launched in 2016 by the Council for the Welfare of Children, found an 80% total prevalence of all forms of violence against children across
various settings. There are currently several coordinated efforts in order to provide the adequate comprehensive medical, psychosocial and police services to abused children and their families. The Philippines is a Pathfinder country of the Global Partnership to End Violence Against Children, thus the government seeks to continue improving their National Action Plan in response to violence against children mainly through the enhancement of legislation, policies, programmes, and interventions. It also seeks to capitalize on evidence-based policy recommendations the capacity building and/or strengthening of all service providers in order to prevent and respond to violence against children.

The research team is led by Dr Bernadette Madrid, Executive Director of the Child Protection Network Foundation and convenor of the Child Abuse, Neglect & Exploitation (CANE) Study Group under the Institute of Child Health and Human Development at the UP Manila National Institutes of Health. She is a specialist in research on adverse childhood experiences, child maltreatment, and the functioning of child protection services, and she has a long experience in providing policy advice both nationally and internationally. The team also includes Prof. Edith Liane Alampay, Associate Professor at the Department of Psychology of the Ateneo de Manila University. She is an expert in cross-national comparative research on child adjustment and co-investigator of the Parenting across Cultures study, a longitudinal study conducted in 13 cultures across the world.

Image source: Prof. Manuel Eisner

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Valenzuela is one of the 16 peripheral cities that comprise the greater Manila metropolitan area, located about 15 km north of Manila City. Over the past five decades, the city has grown into a major industrial and economic base with a population of about 600,000. It is subdivided into 33 neighbourhoods (barangays).

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Solution (Technological Advancement) for Problem

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Solution (Technological Advancement) for Problem

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Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte aims to reduce the rate of poverty to 14% by 2022 through its strategy, AmBisyon2040. By providing greater access to education & healthcare, family aid, economic improvement, and building more infrastructures, we will be able to combat poverty in the Philippines.

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AmBisyon Natin 2040 represents the collective long-term vision and aspirations of the Filipino people for themselves and for the country in the next 25 years. It describes the kind of life that people want to live, and how the country will be by 2040. As such, it is an anchor for development planning across at least four administrations.

AmBisyon Natin 2040 is a picture of the future, a set of life goals and goals for the country. It is different from a plan, which defines the strategies to achieve the goals. It is like a destination that answers the question "Where do we want to be?". A plan describes the way to get to the destination; AmBisyon Natin 2040 is the vision that guides the future and is the anchor of the country's plans.

AmBisyon Natin 2040 is the result of a long-term visioning process that began in 2015. More than 300 citizens participated in focus group discussions and close to 10,000 answered the national survey. Technical studies were prepared to identify strategic options for realizing the vision articulated by citizens. The exercise benefitted from the guidance of an Advisory Committee composed of government, private sector, academe, and civil society.

The life of all Filipinos in 2040:

Matatag, Maginhawa at Panatag na Buhay

By 2040, Filipinos enjoy a strongly rooted, comfortable, and secure life.
In 2040, we will all enjoy a stable and comfortable lifestyle, secure in the knowledge that we have enough for our daily needs and unexpected expenses, that we can plan and prepare for our own and our children's future. Our family lives together in a place of our own, and we have the freedom to go where we desire, protected and enabled by a clean, efficient, and fair government.
Filipinos are strongly rooted: matatag. Filipino families live together; there is work-life balance so that there is time to spend with family even for members who work. On weekends, families and friends enjoy time together in parks and recreational centers. It is a high-trust society with a strong sense of community. There are volunteer opportunities, and Filipinos spend time to serve the community, help others who are in need, and contribute to various causes.

Filipinos are comfortable: maginhawa. No one is poor, no one is ever hungry. Filipino families live in comfortable homes with the desired amenities and secure tenure. Families and friends are within reach because transport is convenient and affordable, and they can take a vacation together within the country and abroad. Children receive quality education so that they realize their full potentials and become productive members of society. Decent jobs that bring sustainable income are available, including opportunities for entrepreneurship.

Filipinos are secure: panatag. Filipinos feel secure over their entire lifetime. They expect to live long and enjoy a comfortable life upon retirement. There are resources to cover unexpected expenses, and there are savings. They feel safe in all places in the country. Filipinos trust their government because it is free of corruption and provides service to all its citizens equally.

Realizing the AmBisyon

Filipinos live in a prosperous, predominantly middle class society where no one is poor.

Government must also ensure that economic growth is broad-based across sectors and regions; it must result in a more equal income distribution. Moreover, there should be aggressive interventions to increase opportunities for the poor to participate in the growth process even as they are protected against the negative impact of economic and political instabilities, natural and man-made calamities. Poverty must be eradicated by 2040, if not earlier.

It must also be recognized that certain individuals cannot immediately participate in the growth process. For infants and children, there is the requisite care, guidance, health and education services until they become mature enough. It is important that parents and families should be able to provide these, although government should stand ready to fill the gap. A major intervention, therefore, is for parents to adequately prepare for having a family.

Filipinos live a long and healthy life.

Filipinos are smart and innovative.

Well-educated, innovative Filipinos will continuously improve the quality of life in the Philippines. If education is the process of facilitating the "acquisition of knowledge, skills, values, beliefs and habits"1 , formal education is the structured method of facilitating the acquisition of a select set of such knowledge, skills, values, beliefs and habits. Government, therefore, must be proactive in setting the agenda for education. It is, after all, about molding the future Filipino and creating the future Philippine society.

More than ensuring that Filipino students acquire the foundational literacies (reading, numeracy, scientific literacy, ICT literacy, economic and financial literacy, cultural and civic literacy), the formal education system must also ensure that students obtain competencies (critical thinking, problem-solving, creativity, communication, collaboration) and develop character qualities (curiosity, initiative, persistence and grit, adaptability, leadership, social and cultural awareness)2 . This may require a revision of the curriculum content, but more importantly, the mode of delivery. At the same time, there must be access to lifelong learning opportunities so that competencies are continuously upgraded and updated

Filipinos live in a high-trust society.

A high-trust society allows Filipinos to enjoy a panatag na buhay together with their families. Extending to the bigger community, a high trust society equals a matatag na pamayanan.

A high-trust society allows people to see to their economic pursuits, secure in the knowledge that they will be able to enjoy the fruits of their labor. However, societal ties must be strengthened where every Filipino cares for the plight of his fellow Filipino. Every Filipino must feel upset if another Filipino is found hungry and poor, or unable to recover from unfortunate events.

A caring society does not evolve overnight; it must be cultivated. Venues and opportunities for interpersonal interaction must be provided. But usually, it takes root from building trust in established institutions like government. Government must therefore begin the process of confidence-building by being clean, fair and citizen-centered. After all, a high-trust society is the most durable bedrock for vibrant, culturally diverse, and resilient communities of the Philippines by 2040- hopefully, sooner.

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AmBisyon Natin 2040 represents the collective long-term vision and aspirations of the Filipino people for themselves and for the country in the next 25 years. It describes the kind of life that people want to live, and how the country will be by 2040.

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SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities

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SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities

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According to Valenzuela City Pre-Feasibility Study on the Integrated Flood Risk Management, Valenzuela city is located in an area that is susceptible to frequent typhoons and intense tropical storms. The topographic characteristics show that about 25% of the City is below sea level making natural drainage very difficult. The combination of the above factors exposes Valenzuela City to frequent and severe flooding as the existing systems can no longer cope, in addition to the impacts due to climate change.

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"Philippines gets more than its share of disasters," according to Hilary Whiteman of CNN news, as the country is located on a "path of destruction...The Philippines sits on the western rim of the Pacific Ocean, the most active area for tropical cyclones because of the vast expanse of deep, warm ocean water. The country comprises more than 7,000 islands, leaving plenty of exposed coast at the mercy of wind and rain... An average of eight or nine tropical cyclones make landfall in the Philippines each year... (In 2013) Super Typhoon Haiyan made landfall south of the capital... where it severely devastated the city of Tacloban, and then struck the Central Visayas. "

(http://edition.cnn.com/2013/11/08/world/asia/philippines-typhoon-destruction/)
Valenzuela, FLOOD PRONE CITY
Valenzuela is located north of Manila. It is bounded in the north by Meycauayan and Caloocan (NE), Quezon City in the east, Manila in the south and Malabon and Navotas in the west. Valenzuela City have access to Manila Bay via the Malabon wetlands.

The document "Valenzuela Livable City" begins with the case of Typhoon Yolanda hitting the Philippines in Tacloban. This is done since "Valenzuela City was cited almost at similar state as Tacloban. The City is facing land subsidence and multi-faction. It is below sea level and practically also along the coastal area."

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According to Valenzuela City Pre-Feasibility Study on the Integrated Flood Risk Management:

The City of Valenzuela is located in an area which is susceptible to frequent typhoons and intense tropical storms. The topographic characteristics show that about 25% of the City is below sea level making natural drainage very difficult. The combination of the above factors exposes Valenzuela City to frequent and severe flooding as the existing systems can no longer cope, in addition to the impacts due to climate change."

Besides the localised drainage problems, Valenzuela experiences heavy flooding when earth dikes along Meycauayan River... and along Santolan River under the jurisdiction of other cities, are breached. Tidal flooding is also known to occur in some of the downstream areas of the City.

The frequent severe floods do impact significantly on the socioeconomic fabric of the City. It is therefore important to reduce the City's vulnerability to floods and to improve drainage in the flood-prone areas in Valenzuela City with the end result of improving the quality of life of affected residents and enhancing economic growth of the City.

Rivers - Interior Drainage

There are several large drainage channels that drain Valenzuela City and discharge mostly towards the northwest to the Meycauayan River. The Polo, Coloong, Lingahan, and Longos Rivers are the most important of these drainage channels. The Polo River also drains a small area to the Tullahan River. These channels discharge at the lowest end via sluice gates and pumping plants. They are unable to drain by gravity when the two principal rivers are high.

Interior drainage is a real problem for various reasons, but mostly because (i) there is insufficient pumping capacity on the major drainage channels, (ii) secondary drains are too small and water must travel long distances to join the main drainage channels, (iii) culverts are blocked with rubbish and situation, (iv) tertiary drains along the sides of the roads are also blocked with rubbish and silt, and (v) depressed areas"

Internal Drainage Improvements

"The Pre-Feasibility Study suggests concentrating on seven of the most severe problem areas in the city... The seven includes an enlarged 3.8 km concrete drainage channel and three box culverts through the Central Business District from Marulas, Karuhatan, and Maysan to a large creek that discharges through a new Viente Reales pumping facility and into the Tullahan River..."
RESEARCH AIM
The research aims at exploring:

creative and alternative solutions to create a flooding resilient community

urban design and urban planning to endow the community with resiliency in light of a natural disaster like typhoon. The idea revolves around discovering how urban design and planning can mitigate the effects of a natural disaster within a vulnerable community through the built environment's ordnance.

the morphology and the program of the built environment to support the resiliency of the community's inhabitants and their livelihoods in light of the typhoon occurrence. The aim is to discover how architecture can bolster the inhabitants of a vulnerable community through the built environment's form and function.

the processes, materials, and systems involved in creating the built environment to amplify a community's resiliency in light of the typhoon occurrence. The aim is to discover how innovative building technologies and methodologies can enhance the essential facilities and infrastructure for a vulnerable community through the built environment's construction.

the social and technical policies needed to maintain a community's resiliency in light of a natural disaster. The aim is to discover how prescient and innovative planning guidelines and building codes can sustain a vulnerable community's physical and social longevity through the built environment's regulation.

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VALENZUELA: RIVER FLOODING | Designing Resilience in Asia

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"Philippines gets more than its share of disasters," according to Hilary Whiteman of CNN news, as the country is located on a "path of destruction...The Philippines sits on the western rim of the Pacific Ocean, the most active area for tropical cyclones because of the vast expanse of deep, warm ocean water.

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Solution (Technological Advancement) for Problem

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Solution (Technological Advancement) for Problem

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According to the article by Rappler, the Department of Public Works and Highways have opened two pumping stations to ease low-lying areas in Valenzuela. This will help in draining major areas in Valenzuela city to ease the damage of flooding that affects the residents.

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New Valenzuela pumping stations to ease floods, says DPWH

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The Department of Public Works and Highways opens two pumping stations in the barangays of Wawang Pulo and Coloong in Valenzuela City