Social Profile
Education
City of Santiago schools continue to provide quality education from preschool education to higher education. It is the home of 153 educational institutions offering various education programs. One hundred nine (109) of these are public in which 68 are City Government-run Child Development Centers and Supervised Neighborhood Playgroups (SNP), 32 are public elementary schools and nine (9) are public secondary schools. Thirty-one (31) are private schools and early learning centers in which seven (7) are offering Early Childhood Education and K to 12 Program. The City is also home to 11 higher education institutions that include one (1) state university, one (1) public technical/vocational/post- secondary school, one (1) university, three (3) colleges and seven (7) computer schools.
Health
City of Santiago has eight (8) hospitals, one of which is government-owned and seven (7) are privately-owned. The City Government health services, complemented with the operation of the government-owned Southern Isabela Medical Center (SIMC) and seven (7) private hospitals are strategically located in the urban barangays.
The SIMC, a Level III hospital accredited by DOH has 350 bed-capacity, while Santiago City Birthing Center a Primary- PhilHealth accredited RHU for maternal and child care has 6 bed-capacity. The seven (7) private hospitals have accreditations ranging from Level I to III which have a combined total bed capacity of 374. This translates to a bed-to-population ratio of 1:187 (Year 2017), surpasses the ideal ratio of 1:500.
The City Health Office as a preventive, promotive and curative arm of the Department of Health is tasked to respond to the increasing health problems and needs of Santiagueños. The City Health Office is a Sentrong Sigla Phase I Level II Certified, PHIC accredited for TB DOTS, OPB, Maternal and Child Package (MCP) and newborn screening. The City Government has 37 barangay health centers, four (4) birthing centers and a City Birthing Complex. These health facilities are managed by 96 CHO personnel composed of five (5) doctors, two (2) dentists, two (2) medical technologists, two (2) pharmacists, twelve (12) nurses, thirty-eight (38) midwives, four (4) sanitary inspectors and thirty-one (31) other health personnel. The CHO supervises the 37 barangay health centers which are handled by 37 midwives with 360 barangay health workers and 37 barangay nutrition scholars. This translates to a medical personnel to population ratio of 1:27,295 for doctors, and 1:11,373 for nurses. The number of doctors and nurses in the City Health Office do not suffice the ideal ratio of 1:20,000 population.
Housing
Based on 2017 HPSM Census, the City has a total of 34,512 housing units. 30,900 of which are single house type, 3,015 are duplex type, 488 are multi-unit residences, 75 are commercial, industrial and agricultural buildings, 34 are in makeshift housing and no dwelling units. The status of tenure of housing units in the City has varied classifications. 75.41% or 26,025 of the housing units were owned, 10.42% or 3,593 are renting, 10.69% or 3,688 are occupying rent free with consent of owner, 1.53% or 527 are living with other household in one housing unit while 431 reside in socialized housing units.
As of February 2019 the City has 47 subdivisions developed with a combined land area of 245.832 hectares. The number of subdivisions went up from thirty (30) in 2013 to forty-seven (47) in 2019. These incessant programs in housing attract developers in the City were attributed by the high migration and level of development of the City. All subdivisions are located in low to non-susceptibility to flooding except for St James Heights Subdivision where some of the housing units are located in highly susceptible flooding area.
Based on 2019 CPDO-DILG data on Inventory of Lands for Socialized Housing, the City has 41.958 hectares of land inhabited by 1,215 families who are informal settlers and poor families displaced due to natural and human-made disasters. The lands for socialized housing sponsored by the City Government are located at barangays Calao East and Sinili. The City Government co-sponsored 6 housing projects namely, the Habitat for Humanity (3 sites located at barangays Naggasican and Balintocatoc), the Gawad Kalinga (2 sites located at barangays Rizal and Bannawag Norte) and the DSWD Core Shelter Assistance Project (1 site located at Bannawag Norte).
Protective Services
The Santiago City Police Office
In terms of Peace and Security, the Santiago City Police Office is has a strength of 405 personnel. It operates 2 substations (located in Dubinan West and Villasis) and six (6) police outposts (located at Barangays Sinsayon, Patul, Baluarte, Abra, Batal and Rizal) to effectively monitor peace and order situation and to quickly respond to emergency incidences within their respective jurisdiction. This translates to a police to population ratio of 1:342 which surpassed the ideal police to population ratio of 1:500. The peace and security force is being supplemented by 45 DPOS personnel. Nine (9) DPOS are in-charge of traffic management in major thoroughfares of the City.
The Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) that operates in the City provides essential support to the police force. To further enhance public safety and maintenance of peace and order, the Public Safety and Command Center was established in 2012. The PSCC is a 24/7 surveillance facility equipped with the state-of-the-art closed-circuit televisions (CCTVs) and remote sensing monitoring equipment supervised jointly by the Disaster Risk Reduction Management Office (DRRMO) and Santiago City Police Office.
The Social Welfare & Protection Services
In terms of Social Welfare and Protection Services, the City Social Welfare and Development Office leads in sustaining a holistic helping intervention to individuals, families and communities in need of social protection by way of protective services, social action and policy intervention dubbed as the BESPREN sa KALINGA. The CSWD supervises the daily operation of the Half-way Home and Balay Namnama which provide protective care for the victim-survivors and CICL, respectively. Aside from the Department Head and Assistant Department Head the agency has six social workers and 3 development workers handling the core programs of the agency addressing the concerns of Children in need of Special Protection (CNSPs) and Out-of- School Youth (OSY), families in need of special protection, older persons, Persons with Disabilities (PWDs), Women in Especially Difficult Circumstances (WEDC), community-based programs and center-based programs.
The protective services of the City are supplemented by the presence of functional PNP Children and Women’s Desk and the citizen’s active role in the Stop VAWC Campaign and the Barangay Council for the Protection of Children (BCPC) in the 37 barangays. There are five active NGOs (Helga Mosey Children’s Home, World Vision, Pamana and ULS Pananagutan Center) providing welfare and protective services to families in need of special protection.
The Bureau of Fire Protection
In terms of Fire Prevention and Protection, the Santiago City Fire Protection service is delivered by the main local branch of the Bureau of Fire Protection under the supervision of the Regional BFP. It is equipped with 5 serviceable firetrucks. The station lacks substation sites to entirely cover the city’s fire protection response and demand. The BFP has 35 personnel that translate to 1:3,899 firefighter-to-population ratio and requires 37 additional personnel to complement the increasing population of the city needing fire protection services. The City has been maximizing the generous assistance of the Santiago Sports Athletic Association Fire Volunteers Brigade lead and operated by Filipino-Chinese Fire volunteers equipped with two advanced fire- trucks and well-trained firefighters.
The Bureau of Jail Management
and Penology
The Bureau of Jail Management and Penology located at Batal, Santiago City has an area of 5,000 sq.m. more or less and is way below the minimum area requirement of 1 hectare. The BJMP is a district jail that accommodates both detainees/prisoners within the fourth district of Isabela, and inmates under court decisions from Municipal Trial Court (MTC) and Regional Trial Court (RTC), respectively. As of 2016, 889 inmates are imprisoned at BJMP of which 98 are female. Of this magnitude, a jail guard-to-inmate population ratio of 1:10 was registered and is above the standard ratio of 1:7. Apprehended minors or children in conflict with the law were housed at Balay Namnama and at Regional Rehabilitation Center for the Youth in Enrile, Cagayan.
The City Disaster Risk Reduction Management Office
The City Disaster Risk Reduction Management Office (CDRRMO) manages rescue operations and is actively supported by the different private groups, volunteers, and 37 barangay disaster coordinating councils in the City. The City Government is equipped with serviceable 2 ambulances, and 3 rubber boats in emergency response and disaster operations. Structures and mechanisms are institutionalized and fully functional. Hailed as the Hall of Fame of the Gawad Kalasag, the City has been consistent in implementing its best practices on disaster preparedness, prevention, mitigation, response and rehabilitation strategies as contained in its updated plans, programs, projects and activities to ensure a more pro-active and resilient Santiagueños amidst climate change and disaster risks.