Davao City: 2024

By December 2024 Davao’s population will be 2 million, double that of Cagayan de Oro. Our land area is 244,000 hectares, one of the world’s biggest. The Finance Department said that as of 2023, out of 147 cities we are the number 9 richest city in total assets. The other 9 cities are from Luzon. On April 13, 2022, Pres. Duterte signed R.A. 11708 creating the Metropolitan Davao Development Authority sponsored by 3rd District’s Congressman Isidro Ungab. In 2023, the National Economic Development Authority (NEDA) approved the Davao Regional Development Plan for 2023 to 2028.

Davao City serves as the primary catalyst for the progress and development of the Davao region, encompassing the provinces of Del Norte, Del Sur, De Oro, Occidental, and Oriental. This pivotal role is underscored by six key factors. First, our population makes us the region’s biggest source and user of consumer goods.

Second, the biggest labor force continuously increased by graduates of five Universities. 1. UP Mindanao, 2. UM, 3. USEP, 4. ADdU, and 5. Immaculate Conception. In 2025, National University’s Graduate school will open (SM Ecoland) and hopefully in 2027, Dela Salle’s graduate school (the Davao Global Township). We also have the biggest number of Colleges: Holy Cross of Davao, RMC, Assumption, Jose Maria, etc. In Mindanao, we are the only city with 2 Medical schools: 1. Davao Medical School Foundation, 2. Brokenshire College – School of Medicine, and the biggest Mindanao government Hospital complex Southern Philippines Medical Center, 3. And most number of nursing school corporations have offices here.

Third, we have 2 of Mindanao’s biggest busiest ports, Sasa and Florendo’s in Panabo. The Panabo Port is also Mindanao’s most modern container port with many giant cranes and forklifts making it faster and easier to load and unload cargoes thus saving time, and money. Our coastline is the longest among the 147 cities. From Inawayan, Daliao, Talomo, Sasa, Panacan, Lasang, putting new ports and factories near the sea is easy. We have thousands of hectares of raw land in the interior and on the beach so attracting industries, factories, whether inland or on the shoreline is doable.

Fourth, Davao City will be the first Metropolis in Mindanao. We are surrounded on one side by Davao Gulf; on the south Davao del Sur and Cotabato’s 5 provinces, west Bukidnon, northeast, Davao del Norte, Agusan del Norte and del Sur, Surigao del Norte and del Sur, Davao De Oro, Occidental and Oriental. Every Christmas and on Holidays, traffic is very bad because thousands of vehicles from all over Mindanao come to Davao for malling, vacations, sightseeing. Davao car plate starts with letter L. On holidays, sometimes there are more vehicles with car plates beginning with letter M, B, D, H etc. than L meaning many eateries, restaurants created, more palengke sales of pork, chicken, gulay.

Fifth, we have the 4 factors needed to attract business: 1. Power, 2. Water, 3. Telecommunications, 4. Infrastructure. Power, the Aboitiz Binugao 160 megawatt coal-fired power plant opened in 2016. Less than 80 km away is the new San Miguel Malita 160 megawatt coal-fired power plant; 160 km the new Alsons 200 megawatt coal-fired power plant in Sarangani; 160 km, the Kidapawan Lopez 110 megawatt geothermal plant getting heat from Mt. Apo; 180 km, the 300 megawatt Pulangi Bukidnon Hydropower Plant and 5.250 megawatts power barges in Maco. We are the only City with 5 backups.

And sixth, we are the only city with 2 water sources, each source capable of giving water to 2 million Dabawenyos. 1. The 44 wells in the Dumoy – Toril – Inawayan aquifer, and 2. The Mt. Tipolog Panigan Tamugan rivers surfaces water WEIR DAM with a water treatment Plant.

This year, the 9km underground cable will be operational, the first and only one in Mindanao and Visayas, this is the Magsaysay, Claveria, San Pedro, C. Bangoy, Legaspi and T. Claudio grid. Infrastructure: roads, bridges, ports, airports, before 2016, Mindanao’s infrastructure was very poor because Manila focused on Luzon and Visayas. From 2016 to 2019, President Duterte poured all the infrastructure projects in Mindanao after Manila’s neglect since 1946. Today, we can travel comfortably all over Mindanao because 90% of the highways, towns, cities, Barangay streets are cemented. COVID 19 from 2020 to 2022 stopped all constructions.

Thank you, President Duterte, especially for the coastal road, the longest/most beautiful in our nation.