ENDEAVOR
Years ago, I experienced the vitality of Panay Island. I flew into Roxas City in Capiz to fulfill a Rotary speaking engagement, then made a road trip to Kalibo, Aklan for the return flight as I had to be back in Manila on the same day, owing to pressing government duties.
I had visited Boracay in Aklan for family leisure and on business. I once spoke at an annual meeting of the Public Relations Society of the Philippines – flying directly to the then newly expanded Caticlan Airport. Previously, one flew into Kalibo and took a road trip to Caticlan that took longer than the flight from Manila, before crossing over to Boracay in Malay town.
Panay Island is made up of the provinces of Aklan, Antique, Capiz and Iloilo. It’s a triangular island occupying the western part of the Visayas. According to the National Commission on Culture and Arts (NCCA): “Panay also originally represented the entire Visayas region on the Philippine flag as one of the three stars, as it served as the center or mainland of the Visayas during the Philippine revolution.”
On June 12, 2015, then President Benigno ‘Noynoy’ Aquino III opted to mark the 117th celebration of Philippine Independence Day in Santa Barbara, Iloilo, the town that served as the base of Filipino revolutionary forces led by General Martin Delgado – who defeated the Spanish army led by General Diego de los Rios – to honor the Visayans’ significant role in asserting the country’s sovereignty. According to historical accounts, the Spanish forces established their base in Iloilo in their retreat from Luzon following General Emilio Aguinaldo’s proclamation of Philippine independence on June 12, 1898.
The President then proceeded to the Iloilo provincial capitol for the traditional vin d’honneur (wine of honor) reception for the members of the diplomatic corps who are given the opportunity to convey their countries’ felicitations on this most important occasion. A record number of 91 ambassadors, along with members of the Cabinet and of Congress, were present at the event.
Antique, the fourth province in Panay, occupies the entire western section of the island, and is the site of its two highest mountains, Mount Madja-as and Mount Nantug, as well as several rivers and waterfalls that make it a scenic tourist attraction.
Iloilo City, a bustling metropolis, has become a major convention center after the inauguration in 2015 of the Iloilo Convention Center that hosted several meetings of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Summit hosted by the Philippines. The convention center is part of the Iloilo business park that was developed under the aegis of the Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority (TIEZA).
Most recently, Capiz’s Pueblo de Panay Township was recognized as the Masterplan Development of the Year, Philippine category at the Real Estate Asia Awards 2023. Focal point of this township is the Pueblo de Panay Technopark, an Information Technology-Business Process Management (IT-BPM) hub accredited by the Philippine Export Zone Authority (PEZA), that has thrust Roxas City into the limelight as one of the Philippines’ digital cities.
The 670-hectare township, largest in Western Visayas, is owned and developed by Pueblo de Panay, Inc. headed by Jose Nery “Bub” Ong. Pueblo de Panay “features a seamless integration of residential, commercial, medical, educational, and light-agro-industrial zones, making it a viable investment destination.”
Boosting Pueblo de Panay’s recent expansion is the Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) that recently extended an initial P1.106 billion loan for the construction of a business process outsourcing (BPO) facility and a third condominium building. According to DBP President Michael de Jesus, this is in line with the bank’s focus on supporting “four strategic sectors of the economy – infrastructure and logistics; micro, small and medium enterprises; environment; social services and community development.”
The foregoing developments propelled Western Visayas – that also includes Negros Occidental and Guimaras provinces – into becoming the country’s fastest growing region, growing by 9.3 percent in 2021-2022, as reported by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA). This represents a giant leap from rank eight in 2021 to number one in just a year. Also remarkable is that the region posted the highest growth in terms of household final consumption expenditure at 12.3 per cent. The PSA noted the top three fastest growing sub-industries such as the accommodation and food services activities (47.3 percent), transportation and storage (41.5 percent), and other services (37.5 percent).
This reflects the multiplier effect of combined private sector and government investment and development initiatives. Tourism growth is driven by good infrastructure such as airports, seaports and well-paved highways that make travel as seamless as it could be. Major current projects include the Boracay Circumferential Road that is expected to be completed by 2024; the Bacolod-Negros Occidental Economic Highway; and the Panay-Guimaras-Negros Island (PGN) Bridge.
Has economic progress uplifted quality of life in Western Visayas?
Available figures show that poverty incidence in the region went down significantly from 18.4 percent in 2015 to 11.9 in 2018; this is comparable to the national rates at 17.9 percent and 12.1 percent, respectively. This translates into a reduction in the number of poor families from 315,400 to 218,700 within the same three-year period.
For economic progress to be truly meaningful, its benefits must be felt at the grassroots level.