ABSTRACT
Davao City, with a population of 795,000 located in eastern Mindanao on Davao Gulf, is the second largest urban center in the Philippines, separated by 900 kilometers from Manila. The knowledge that Davao residents possess concerning their city is inversely proportional to their socioeconomic status. The problems of the city and of its arrived households clash at the interface between them: the squatter settlement. The sequence begins on a stage provided by the local community and unfolds at last in the national and international arena of what has come to be called, once again, "political economy." The first Davao City survey demonstrated that the continued residence of all squatter households adjacent to the central business district, and not just those in Lanang, was essential for their continued self-support. The redesign of squatter settlements would require continuous interaction with beneficiary households over several years of construction and initiation of services.
