Physical Address
304 North Cardinal St.
Dorchester Center, MA 02124
This is AI generated summarization, which may have errors. For context, always refer to the full article.
The region’s economic performance exceeded the national average of 5.7%, driven by strong activity in trade, manufacturing, agriculture and construction, as well as the opening of the Panguil Bay Bridge
CAGAYAN DE ORO, Philippines – Northern Mindanao’s economy grew by 6% in 2024, outpacing the national average, but the region’s said growth may slow in 2025 due to external risks including the return of US President Donald Trump and his plan to deport undocumented immigrants.
The Department of Economy, Planning and Development (DEPDev) in Region X, formerly National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA), said the region’s economic performance exceeded the national average of 5.7%, driven by strong activity in trade, manufacturing, agriculture and construction, as well as the opening of the Panguil Bay Bridge.
“Our per capita output crossed the P200,000 mark, the third highest and sixth fastest growing economy in the country,” outgoing Regional Development Council (RDC) chairperson and Lanao del Norte Representative Imelda Quibranza-Dimaporo said.
“These are not mere statistics – more than 13,000 individuals have been lifted out from poverty according to statistics provided by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) in the region,” she said.
In her final State of the Region report over the weekend, Dimaporo said Northern Mindanao has grown into a trillion-peso economy with industry doubling its growth and tourism coming back, creating 187,000 jobs regionwide.
Dimaporo said that because of the Panguil Bay Bridge in Tubod, Lanao del Norte and Tangub, Misamis Occidental, “the value of land has spiked to P15,000 to P20,000 per square meter from P5,000 per square meter before the bridge was built,” spurring fears that much-needed irrigated rice lands will be converted into commercial use.
“We are now looking to local legislation to stop the conversion of agricultural land to commercial and real estate projects,” she said.
DEPDev-Northern Mindanao Director Mylah Faye Aurora Cariño said the region is second in overall agricultural production with P155.28 billion in crops and fisheries.
“Our inflation rate remains at 3.7%, stabilizing family household food budgets,” Cariño said.
Cariño said the expansion and upgrading of the Laguindingan Airport, “the golden gateway to Mindanao,” is on schedule, as reported by its operator Aboitiz InfraCapital.
Aboitiz InfraCapital said Laguindingan Airport in Misamis Oriental is now capable of handling 337 flights a week. The airport is the first successful public-private partnership project under the Marcos administration.
Dimaporo said that despite the robust economy of Northern Mindanao, there are challenges ahead that can affect its growth, such as the escalation of the Iran-Israel war and US President Trump’s deportation policy on undocumented immigrants.
She said undocumented Filipino immigrants in the US who would be affected by Trump’s deportation order would come home without available jobs or compete with the local labor sector.
Cariño said these are the challenges they would take up during the next RDC planning session in October. – Rappler.com
