via Rappler, 29 June 2024: Local Government Unit museums, like the Museo ni Dr. Pio Valenzuela featured in this article, play a crucial role in preserving local history and fostering community identity. These museums offer interactive, educational experiences that extend learning beyond the classroom. Despite challenges in funding and visitor numbers, they have significant cultural and economic impacts on their communities.
Museums handled by LGUs might be smaller in many aspects compared to NMP-run museums, but they still have a big impact, especially on the communities they are in.
Bersales said that museums managed by LGUs can even “take the place” of national museums in places without a branch, adding that they could be a “good first stop not only for locals but also outsiders…to get a grasp of the town/city within a short span of time.”
Architect Gio Abcede, president of the Heritage Conservation Society, meanwhile, said that LGU-run museum initiatives have a “unique draw” for visitors from different provinces.
“These museums have the capacity to promote the local craftsmen’s work, the art, food, music, or other practices that can boost more economic benefits for their own locality. These places have unique characteristics that they can play on, through the creative use of their museum spaces,” Abcede said.
