When science meets policy: Quezon City turns the Vendor Business School from pilot project into citywide success, empowering food vendors and transforming urban markets

Awinoh, Martha; Ruby, P.; Alonso, S.; Ricarte, P.; Bertuso, A.

When science meets policy: Quezon City turns the Vendor Business School from pilot project into citywide success, empowering food vendors and transforming urban markets

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Descripción

This brief documents how Quezon City in the Philippines transformed a research-driven pilot into citywide policy by institutionalizing the Vendor Business School (VBS) through a municipal ordinance in 2025. Developed through a partnership between the Quezon City Government and CGIAR, the VBS strengthens informal food vendors through practical training on food safety, business management, climate change adaptation, and sustainability. Since its pilot in 2024, the program has demonstrated how targeted capacity building can improve livelihoods while enhancing the safety, resilience, and quality of urban food systems. The institutionalization of VBS illustrates how science-informed, locally owned solutions can drive inclusive systems transformation and offers a scalable model for strengthening urban food systems in rapidly growing cities across the Global South.