WORLD HUMANITIES NETWORK FORUM 2

MAYOR Belen Fernandez is in South Korea to present Dagupan City’s best practices in health and social services at the World Humanities Network Forum 2 (WHNF 2) hosted by the city of Andong.

In her absence, Vice Mayor Bryan Kua serves as acting mayor of Dagupan, while Councilor Michael Fernandez acts as vice mayor.

The WHNF 2 is attended by representatives from 22 countries across Asia and the Pacific. It continues the discussions from a previous assembly held last year in Indonesia, where Mayor Fernandez also served as a resource speaker. The forum is led by Dr. Bernardino Irawati Tjandradewi, Secretary General of the United Cities and Local Governments (UCLG) Asia-Pacific.

Fernandez recalled that during her presentation in Indonesia, Andong’s Deputy Mayor Chang Cheol Woong invited her to speak again when South Korea hosted the event. He expressed interest in adopting Dagupan’s best practices, particularly in health and social welfare programs.

Among these initiatives are the “UnliSerbisyo” outreach program, home visits, Child Health Advocates, scholarship aid for 6,000 underprivileged students, “Maaron Ina,” Katropa, Teen Center, and the Children’s Congress.

On her first day in Andong, Mayor Fernandez and Deputy Mayor Chang signed a letter of intent between the two cities. The document expresses their shared goal of establishing a sisterhood agreement to strengthen cooperation and cultural exchange.

In her televised program Sumbungan ng Bayan aired live from South Korea via Kabaleyan Channel 17, Fernandez said Dagupan stands to gain valuable insights from Andong’s model of governance and focus on humanities. (Leonardo Micua)