Nested at the foot of the Caraballo Mountain Range is San Jose City – one of the busiest business centers in the province of Nueva Ecija. Chartered as a city in August 10, 1969, it is now populated by more than 121,000 San Josenians and caters to all sorts of educational, commercial, financial and service facilities.
Within the city operated 12 banking institutions, 14 private elementary schools, 16 public and private high schools, 2 college institutions and 6 technical schools. Rice milling is one of the most developed business activity with at least 28 rice mills in the city producing high quality rice supplied locally and for export.
Basic education, health care, electricity and potable water supply is available to 99% of the population. There are 46 public elementary schools in 38 barangays, three rural health units providing free medical and dental services, two hospitals and a newly developed Panganakan ng San Jose – a modern facility for maternal and child health which currently serves the 2nd District of Nueva Ecija. A complete array of laboratory services is provided by both public and private diagnostic centers.
Farming is the primary source of livelihood for the majority of the population. At least 45,000 metric tons of palay and 35 metric tons of onion are produced every aside from a variety of vegetables and fruits such as string beans, squash, tomato, pepper, mango and papaya. Trading and marketing facilities are in place with a well-developed city public market, a livestock and Bagsakan center. Communications services are available in all points in the city. Transport facilities are available 24 hours a day.
Its strategic location gained San Jose City the title of being a “Gateway to the North” as the city’s central business district provides easy access to the province of Nueva Vizcaya and the Cagayan Valley Region (55 kms), to Pangasinan and the Ilocos Regions (38 kms), to the country’s Summer Capital Baguio City (116 kms) and likewise to the Dingalan Port (70 kms) in Aurora Province.
In the future, it is envisioned to become a center for trading and investment in North Nueva Ecija. The local government has been active in instituting reforms. Among these are: a One-Stop Shop in business licensing, a newly implemented central transport terminal/central dispatch system, a moral reengineering campaign among employees, a consultative approach in governance and most recently, the launching of a Citizen Charter (first of its kind in Region III), for the elimination of bureaucratic red tape in LGU transactions along her battlecry “Tamang proseso, MAbilis na Serbisyo, Handog naming sa inyo”.
Under the leadership of Hon. Marivic Belena, special focus was given to education, environmental regeneration, livelihood development and health care. Also, at the core of her drive for good governance is the application of transparency, maximization of resources and people’s participation – Rice Festival, Pagibang Damara 2009.