Information and news about the USAID Growth with Equity in Mindanao III (GEM 3) Project

Final touches are being added to the Punto de Desembarco de Rizal, or Rizal's Landing Site memorial sculpture, which will be unveiled during the Handuraw Festival of Dapitan City, Zambaoanga del Norte, on December 28-30. The festival honors the achievements of national hero Dr. Jose Rizal during his four-year exile in Dapitan. Other historical sites in the area include the Casa Real, or administration building, where he was temporarily housed, and the main Rizal Shrine. Dapitan, which also has a bustling commercial and entertainment center as well as the famous Dakak Park Beach Resort, is one of the key tourist destinations on the Mindanao Tourism Map being designed by the Mindanao Tourism Council, with technical from USAID's Growth with Equity in Mindanao (GEM) Program, under the oversight of MEDCo.