An introduction to Iloilo city

Iloilo City is a Highly Urbanized City located on Panay island

Iloilo City is a highly urbanized city in the Philippines and the capital city of Iloilo province. It is the regional center of the Western Visayas, as well as the center of the Iloilo-Guimaras Metropolitan Area. In the 2007 census, Iloilo City had a population of 418,710 with a 1.8% population annual growth rate. It is bordered by the towns ofOton in the east, Pavia in the north, Leganes in the northeast and the Iloilo Strait in its eastern and southern coastline. The city was a conglomeration of former towns, which are now the geographical districts, composing of: Jaro, Molo, La Paz, Mandurriao, Villa Arevalo, and Iloilo City Proper. The district of Lapuz, a former part of La Paz, was declared a separate district in 2008.

The history of Iloilo City dates back to the Spanish colonial period, starting out as a small and incoherent grouping of fishermen's hamlets from the Iloilo River by a large swamp which after 1855 became the second most important port of call in the colony due to transhipment of sugar products from the neighboring Negros Island. It was later given the honorific title of "La Muy Noble Ciudad" (English: The Most Noble City) by the Queen Regent of Spain .At the turn of the 20th century, Iloilo City was second to the primate city of Manila, with stores along Calle Real selling luxury products from all over the world, an agricultural experimental station established at La Paz in 1888, a school of Arts and Trades which opened in 1891, and a telephone network system operating in 1894.

Economy

The strategic location of Iloilo City at the center of the Philippines makes it an ideal hub for trade, commerce and industry. Its universities and colleges provide the skilled and talented labor which together with its port facilities, telecommunications infrastructure and utilities have a major impact in attracting businesses and industries focused mainly in banking and finance, retail trading, and business process outsourcing or BPO. The BPO industry has been one of the most active economic sectors as of the current period. The city draws on the region's extensive range of raw materials and its large consumer market. The local government has provided incentives to business in preferred investment areas, such as income tax holidays and free issuance of permits and licenses.^[18]

Trade and industry

There were 8,407 business establishments as of December 2003 in Iloilo City, of which 1,182 are new. Total capital investments for new business establishments is P365,506,020.92. However, both new and renewed capital investments for the year 2003 amounted to Php 13.02 billion.

Of the employed person by type of industry from primary occupation 82 % belongs to service sector, 14 % belongs industry sector and only 4 % are in agriculture (as of April 2003 FIES, NSO).

Average annual family income (at current prices) is P 283,604 or a percentage increase of 32.3 between 1994 to 1997 while Average Annual Family Expenditures is P 226,887 or a 25.6% increase (2000 FIES). Average per Capita Income is P 65,036 and Average Per Capita Expenditures is P 51,557 (FIES 2000). Average Inflation Rate is 3.2, the Average Purchasing Power of the Peso is 0.62 and the Average Consumer Price Index (CPI) is 162.6 in 2003. (Source: NSO, Prices Section).

Government

Although Iloilo City is the provincial seat of government for the province of Iloilo, it maintains its independence from the province. Only the city government officials are voted by the residents of the city. The provincial government has no political jurisdiction over local transactions of the city government, as mandated by the 1937 Charter of Iloilo City.

The city has only one legislative district to represent in the Congress of the Philippines. The current representative of Iloilo City is Geronimo "Jerry" Pontenciano-Treñas of the Liberal party, after three-terms serving as the city mayor. The mayor is Iloilo City's chief executive and heads the city government. The current mayor of Iloilo City for 2010–2013 is former city councilor and vice mayor, Jed Patrick Escalante Mabilog of Partido Liberal. The current vice-mayor seat is held by former councilor José Espinosa III. The vice-mayor heads the legislative branch of the local government, which is composed of twelve duly-elected city councilors.

Being the regional center of Western Visayas, regional offices of national government departments and agencies are located here and are managed by regional chairpersons. Agencies such as theNational Bureau of Investigation, Professional Regulatory Commission, Securities and Exchange Commission, Departments of Education, Tourism, Foreign Affairs, and Health handle transactions coming from the provinces of Aklan, Antique, Capiz, Guimaras, Iloilo, Negros Occidental and the cities of Iloilo and Bacolod.

Infrastructure

[edit]Public transport

Iloilo City is served mostly by passenger jeepneys, white metered taxis and tricycles within the city limits. The passad jeepneys of Iloilo are known for its sleek and sedan-like design. These often serve fixed routes and mostly plies on city's major and secondary roads. Jeepneys are also the main mode of transportation to MIDC (Metro Iloilo) towns. Tricycles serve most secondary roads and city communities.

Large passad jeepneys and buses link Iloilo City to the rest of the province and the island of Panay. Buses bound for Manila are also available due to the Roll-on, Roll-off ferry services of the Strong Republic Nautical Highway. Mini-shuttle vans also serve provincial towns.

Since the opening of the new airport in the town of Cabatuan, air-conditioned airport shuttle vans have served the passengers, crew and the employees of Iloilo Airport from the designated strategic locations in the city, such as in SM City Iloilo and Plaza Jaro.

Roads

The Metro Iloilo's roadways are among the country's busiest. The Diversion Road, Gen. Luna St., Mcarthur Drive, Iznart are Metro Iloilo's major roads. The highway from Diversion Road to Vice President Fernando Lopez Avenue was renovated and widened into a 4 lane road. It connects Iloilo City, Pavia, Sta. Barbara and the Iloilo International Airport. There are two Flyovers in the City, the Infante Flyover and the Gen. Luna – Jalandoni St Flyovers.

Airport

Iloilo International Airport (Iloilo Airport) is the airport serving the general area of Iloilo City. It is located 19 kilometers (12 mi) northwest of Iloilo City on a 188-hectare (460-acre) site in across the towns of Cabatuan, Santa Barbara and San Miguel. It opened to commercial traffic on June 14, 2007 after a decade of planning and construction, replacing Mandurriao Airport in Iloilo City which had been in service for over seventy years. The new airport inherited its IATA and ICAO airport codes, as well as its position as the fourth-busiest airport in the Philippines, from its predecessor. It is linked to the city through Tomas Confessor Highway and served by metered taxis, airport shuttle vans and multicabs. The airport is also considered as the Best Airport of The Philippines.

Seaport

Main article: Port of Iloilo

The Port of Iloilo, is the port serving the general area of Iloilo and the premier port on Panay Island. The new port of iloilo is strategically located at a new site away from the older port facilities. Situated in the Southern coast of Panay Island, in the Panay Gulf, it has one of the country’s safest and most natural harbors. Guimaras Island guards the port from violent storms and makes it ideal for harboring ships and vessels.

• The Iloilo Commercial Port Complex (Iloilo International Port/Loboc Wharf)

• It is located on 20.8 hectares of reclaimed land. It has modern facilities that include 11,400 sq. meters of open space for unhampered operations, supplemented by a backup area of 97,000 sq. meters, a crane,[1] rails of 348 lineal meters; roll-on-roll-off support; a 7,800 container freight stations; and a 720 sq. meter passenger shed. The port complex is ideal for ships plying international routes having a berth length of 400 meters, a width of 26.26 meters and a berthing depth of 10.50 meters.

  • The Iloilo Domestic Port (formerly the Old Foreign Pier)

  The Iloilo Domestic Port or popularly known as "Fort/Port San Pedro", serves inter-island passenger and cargo ferries which serves the routes Manila,Bacolod, Cebu, Zamboanga and Cagayan de Oro. It is located near Fort San Pedro and the mouth of Iloilo River at the City Proper district. It is also the port of call for several domestic shipping companies such as SuperFerry, Negros Navigation, Sulpicio Lines, Cokaliong Shipping, Trans-Asian Shipping and others. The colloquial name "Port San Pedro" refers to the old Spanish fort besides it that was destroyed during World War II.

  • Muelle Loney/Iloilo River Wharf

  It is the original port of the city. Opened to international trade in 1855, it has served as the trans-shipment docks for muscovado sugar in the late 19th to the first half of the 20th century. It has undergone several times of expansion and improvement. Today, it serves smaller cargo ships, roll-on roll-off ferries bound for Guimaras and Negros Island and fast ferries that ply Iloilo-Bacolod route regularly.

  • Iloilo-Guimaras Jetty (Banca) Ports

  Jetty ports for Guimaras outrigger ferries are located at Calle Ortiz and Parola. The terminal at Calle Ortiz serve Jordan, Guimaras-bound passenger and cargo outrigger boats, while Parola terminal serve Buenavista, Guimaras-bound ferries. On the other hand, the City Government of Iloilo plans to construct a modern ferry terminal serving Iloilo and Guimaras through public-private partnership.^[20]

  Roll-on/roll-off ferry service, known in as RO-RO, is available from to Iloilo City. There is also a ro-ro service to Cebu via Negros. It is ranked third in terms of shipcalls at 11,853, fourth in cargo throughout at 491,719 million metric tons and fourth in passenger traffic at 2.4 million annually.
  
  

  Communication

  The presence of advanced telecommunications infrastructure not only makes the Philippines readily accessible through the Internet, but also allows investors to ignore limitations imposed by the inadequacy of physical infrastructure. Iloilo’s economy benefits from the presence of key players in the telecommunications industry, which provide the necessary “info-structure” for commerce.
  Available communication services in Iloilo are: telephone services including domestic and international direct dial, facsimile; mobile communications, internet, telegraph and telex stations, post offices and other messengerial and courier services.
  There are three (3) telephone service providers in Iloilo providing landline connections to almost all of the municipalities. These are: PLDT, INNOVE and BayanTel. These companies are capable of providing fiber optic, copper and microwave T1 and E1 lines.
  Cellular telephone facilities are also provided by three (3) cellular companies namely SMART Communications, Globe and Sun Cellular.
  
  

  Medical facilities

  Among the top medical facilities of Iloilo City is the St. Paul Hospital, founded by the Dennis Joseph Dougherty, the American Bishop of Jaro who later became Archbishop of Philadelphia and Cardinal of the Holy Roman Catholic Church. There is also the Iloilo Mission Hospital, which was founded by American Protestant Missionaries in 1901 as the first mission and Protestant hospital in the country, Iloilo Doctor's Hospital, West Visayas State University Medical Center (formerly the Don Benito Lopez Memorial Hospital), Amosup Seamen's Hospital; the Western Visayas Medical Center, St. Therese Hospital, The Medical City – Iloilo (formerly Saviour International Hospital) and Western Visayas Medical Center.
  Soon to cater to the emerging health needs of the city are the Medicus Medical Center and the Park Medical Center.
  The Iloilo City Emergency Responders is a response unit established in 2003 which caters to emergency cases within the city. It has provided a hotline that would expedite emergency response similar to that of United States' 911.
  
  

  Culture

  Language

  Main article: Hiligaynon language

  Hiligaynon is the language spoken in Iloilo City. English is used as the language of business and education. In addition, Tagalog and other local dialects such as Karay-a (also known as Kinaray-a) are also spoken. Spanish is still spoken by the elderly and some wealthy families and also the elder members of the micro-community of sugar-plantations related families. The Spanish language was the official language of Iloilo since the colonial period and it was removed in the 70's, But it is still been spoken. Hiligaynon is part of the Austronesian language branch spoken in Western Visayas, It was heavily influence and based on the Spanish language and it's orthography. The Austronesian languages are a family of languages widely dispersed throughout the islands of Southeast Asia and the Pacific, with a few members on continental Asia. Hiligaynon is concentrated in the provinces of Iloilo and Negros Occidental.

  
  

  The language is referred to as "Ilonggo" or "Ilongo/Ylongo" in Iloilo and in Negros Occidental. More precisely, "Ilonggo" is an ethno-linguistic group referring to the inhabitants of Iloilo and the culture associated with native Hiligaynon speakers. The distinction between the terms, Ilonggo and Hiligaynon, is unclear.

  
  

  Festivals

  Iloilo City has numerous fiestas and events, from the barangay religious feasts all the way to a city-wide mardi-gras. The city itself has four main festivals which are secular, cultural, and religious in nature. These are held during the "festival season" in the months of January and February.^[21]

  
  

  Dinagyang Festival (every 4th weekend of January)

  Main article: Dinagyang Festival

  The Dinagyang is a religious and cultural festival in Iloilo City, Philippines held on the fourth weekend of January, is the city's largest festival and is held to honor the Santo Niño, and to celebrate the arrival on Panay of Malay settlers and the subsequent selling of the island to them by the Atis. The highlight of this week-long revelry is the street dance competition.

  
  

  Jaro Fiesta/Candelaria Fiesta (every February 2)

  Jaro's celebration of the Feast of Nuestra Señora de la Candelaria (Our Lady of the Candles), the Patroness of Western Visayas, every February 2. The celebration religious celebration, which is well-known in the Philippines, is also an occasion of more secular events like the pageantry of the daughters of the rich families in the District during the coronation of the Jaro Fiesta Queen, and cockfigthing.

  
  

  Paraw Regatta (3rd week of February)

  the Paraw Regatta is a race among seafarers on colorful sailboats called Paraws (claimed as the oldest traditional seacraft in Asia) in the Iloilo Strait between Guimaras Island and the city of Iloilo.^[23] The present-day Paraw managed to maintain its original design from the sailboats of the first settlers from Borneo who were in search of a peaceful home in 1212 A.D. Surviving centuries, the paraws have become a vital part of the Filipino seafaring life. The first race started in 1973 with the mission to preserve the historic value of the paraws. It is held every 3rd weekend of February at Villa Arevalo District in Iloilo City. Today, the event has grown from being a boat race to a festival with various interesting and exotic activities.

  
  

  Chinese New Year (variable)

  Celebrated by Ilonggos of Chinese descent, the festivity is highlighted by cultural presentation of the Chinese schools in the city, Chinese food festival and grand fireworks display.

  
  

  Education

  Iloilo is the educational center of Western Visayas. St. Vincent Ferrer Seminary, the first institution of Higher Education in the Region, was established in the City, through the Papal Bull of Pope Pius IX, dated 27 May 1865. In this Seminary Ilonggo heroes and many distinguished citizens, such as Graciano Lopez Jaena, Martin Delgado, Archbishop Gabriel Reyes, and Jaime Cardinal Sin, obtained their education.

  The City also boasts of the presence of state universities and colleges such as The University of the Philippines Visayas, West Visayas State University, and Western Visayas College of Science and Technology. There are six private universities: University of San Agustin which is managed by the Order of Saint Augustine Fathers located in the city proper, the Protestant founded Central Philippine University (Baptist) in Jaro district, University of Iloilo, St. Paul University which is managed by the Sisters of Saint Paul of Chartres and John B. Lacson Foundation Maritime University (first maritime university in the Philippines) with its flagship on maritime courses.

  Iloilo is also home to numerous private colleges and schools such as the Iloilo Doctors College, Western Institute of Technology (WIT), De Paul College, AMA Computer University, STI, Informatics,ACSI College Iloilo, ABBA Institute of Technology, Iloilo Central Commercial High School, Sun Yat Sen High School, Cabalum Western College, Ateneo de Iloilo, Assumption Iloilo run the Congregation of the Religious of the Assumption, Ateneo de Iloilo – Santa Maria Catholic School run by the Society of Jesus, Angelicum School Iloilo run by Order of Preachers, Philippine Science High School-Western Visayas, and one PAREF affiliated high school, Westbridge School for Boys, Colegio de las Hijas de Jesus which is run by the Congregation of the Daughters of Jesus, or simply Hijas de Jesus, Colegio de San Jose, and Colegio del Sagrado Corazon de Jesus which are both run by the Congregation of the Daughters of Charity of Saint Vincent de Paul. The city government mulls to establish the Iloilo City Community College in Molo District.^[24]

  The Department of Education – Division of Iloilo City covers 88 private schools and 52 public schools.

  
  

  Landmarks

  loilo City's urban planning and architecture reflect the plans of the Spanish colonial and the American colonial administrations. Since Iloilo City is a conglomeration of towns, the districts have their own plaza complexes or town squares which are surrounded by establishments of political and ecclesiastical influence, such as churches and old administrative halls. In 1930, Juan M. Arellano of the Bureau of Public Works designed the schematic plan for Iloilo City, which was influenced by Ebenezer Howard's "Garden City."

  Historical sites

  Molo Church 

  A Gothic renaissance church made of coral rock, located three kilometers from the City proper. It was completed in 19th century. The church, which is also referred to as the "Church of Women" because of the statues of women saints that decorate its pillars, was visited by Jose Rizal on hi way to exile in Dapitan, Mindanao.

  Jaro Cathedral 

  The seat of Jaro Archbishopric (comprising the Metropolitan Ecclesiastical Province of Western Visayas). The Cathedral, which is dedicated to St. Elizabeth of Hungary, is famous for its Shrine of Our Lady of Candles which, according to pious tradition has been miraculously growing. The devotees of the Blessed Virgen, who invoke her under this title of "Nuestra Senora de la Candelaria" come in thousands during her feast day, 2 February. The image was canonically crowned by His Holiness Pope John Paul II, during the Roman Ponriff's visit to Jaro in 1981. Until the present, the miraculous image is the only sacred icon in the Philippines ever crowned personally by a Pope.

  Jaro Belfry 

  One of the few belfries in country that stands apart from the church. It was constructed by the Spaniards to serve also as a watchtower to monitor Muslim invasion from Mindanao. The colonial structure was ruined by an earthquake in 1948, but was restored decades later, in the mid-1990's.

  St. Vincent Ferrer Seminary 

  The first institution of higher education in Western Visayas. Following the Papal Bull of Pope Pius IX, dated 27 May 1865, the Dominican Bishop Mariano Cuartero, O.P., the first Bishop of Jaro, laid the foundation of this seminary in 1869, in honor of St. Vincent Ferrer.

  University of San Agustin 

  An institution of Catholic Higher Education founded on July 15, 1904 by Spanish Augustinian friars belonging to the Province of the Most Holy Name of Jesus of the Philippines and their American confreres from the Augustinian U.S. Province of St. Thomas of Villanova. Elevated as a University on 1 March 1953, the University of San Agustin holds the title as the "First University in Western Visayas".

  Central Philippine University 

  The first Protestant higher education institution in Iloilo, which was founded by the Baptist missionary, Rev. William Orison Valentine. Central Philippine University (CPU) is a non-stock, non-profit Christian institution of higher learning in Iloilo City, Iloilo, Philippines. It was founded in 1905 by American Baptist missionaries as an elementary school for poor boys which eventually opened up a high school in 1920. It converted into a college in 1923 and attained university status in 1953. CPU is the home to the largest library in Western Visayas, the Henry Luce III Library, with more than 200,000 volumes including holdings of special collections like the 40,000 United Nations documents, World War II documents, American Studies Resource Center, Meyer-Asian Collection, Food and Agriculture Organization and Elizabeth Knox Sacred Music Collection. CPU is also the pioneer in Nursing Education in the Philippines. In 1906, the Union Mission Hospital (now Iloilo Mission Hospital) set the stage for nursing as a profession in this country. Nursing education in the Philippines was pioneered by Dr. and Mrs. Andrew Hall, Presbyterian missionaries. Like other professions, nursing in the Philippines evolved from the apprenticeship system. The apprentice system laid the foundation upon which the Iloilo Mission Hospital School of Nursing (then Central Philippine College-College of Nursing and now Central Philippine University College of Nursing) was built and after which other schools of nursing were patterned.

  Villa Lizares/Angelicum School Iloilo 

  The imposing building, which was once the mansion and villa of the Lizares Family. It is one of the most beautiful mansions in Iloilo. The Lizares mansion was sold to the Dominican Order of the Philippines in the late 1970s, and is now the seat of Angelicum School Iloilo- a private, Catholic school run by the Order of the Preachers (Dominicans), who made the school a pioneer in a non-graded, open-classroom education system in the Philippines. The Angelicum is the most popular landmark visited by local folks every Christmas because of the fabulous display of Christmas lights that decorate each inch of the Lizares Mansion – its oldest building set within a sweeping lawn of green grass – the main feature of the panoramic view of the school.

  Distrito Jaro 

  The old section of the City boasts of the mansions and Hispano-Filipino houses of the sugar barons and elite families during the Spanish regime. It is also seat of Catholicism in Western Visayas.

  Archbishop's Palace 

  (Spanish: Palacio del Arzobispo) The residence of the Archbishop of Jaro. It is located southwest of the Jaro Cathedral and southeast of the Jaro Plaza.

  Calle Real (Downtown Iloilo City Heritage District) 

  Old buildings that were constructed in the Commonwealth era in J.M Basa (Calle Real), Iznart, Aldeguer and Guanco were declared as a heritage site of Iloilo. It showcases the unique architecture of the downtown area.

  Museo Iloilo 

  Repository of Iloilo's cultural heritage.

  Muelle Loney 

  The River Port of Iloilo named after British Consul Nicholas Loney, who is considered the father of sugar industry in Panay and Negros. Protected by the Island of Guimaras from typhoons, Muelle Loney is one of the safest harbours in the Country. It was opened to international market in 1855.

  Arroyo Fountain 

  The regional kilometer zero point.

  Jaro Evangelical Church, 

  The first Baptist Church in the Philippine Islands established by the Northern Baptists (now American Baptist Churches).

  La Villa Rica de Arevalo 

  6 kilometers southwest of city proper; 2nd capital of the Alcaldia of Panay; flower and firecracker district of Iloilo City. This is also home to the 3rd oldest image of the Sto. Nino in the Philippines. Also found in the plaza is the replica of the crown given by the Spanish Queen Isabela in 1896.

  Night spots Smallville Entertainment Complex in Mandurriao district is famed in Iloilo City to be the center of night life activities. Hotels such as Westown Hotel and Convention Center, Iloilo Business Hotel and newly opened Smallville21 Hotel are located here. It is home to several bars, clubs, cafés and restaurants.

  Paseo Iloilo of Robinsons Place Iloilo is located in De Leon Street in the City Proper district. Several bars and restaurants are located there.

  Paseo de Arcangeles is home of bars and resto such as Stufyerface, B-code, Langford others u/c.

  
  

  *This post is adopted from the Wikipedia entry on Iloilo city, accessed as of Dec. 24, 2011.

  
  
  

A view of downtown Iloilo city. 

The Iloilo city hall (the taller building) and the Aduana

All photos belong to SSC-Forum (iloilo) member 'Zynet'

The catalyst: A blast from the past.

I contributed an article before and it was published in a local newspaper. That was way back in September of 2008 and its now december of 2011. In that span of time, new corporations from iloilo have expanded outside of the province and have made their presence felt in metro manila and beyond.

From afar, I've been monitoring the growth and expansion of iloilo's corporations in the Philippine business setting and thus far, it made me realize that my province, my hometown has what it takes to help shape the course of business in the Philippines, thanks in part to its corporations that are aggressive in the business environment of the country. From this observation, I've collected a few corporations based in iloilo that are making its presence felt outside of its home province. Here is the article that started it all.

Corporate Iloilo

For several days now, I have been silently monitoring the different online threads about Iloilo. Usually, forum members of different websites would discuss our city’s rate of progress and development in terms of newly announced projects—how tall a proposed building would be, the entry of big name call centers, new malls, new restaurants, or big name coffee chains.

There is also a lot of reference to our past as one of the premier cities and this is accompanied by hopes that we could regain our prominence if we could have more big name brands coming in and taller buildings and more call centers.

I’m not against this. Probably, most of the forum members terribly miss Iloilo or are based in other places and feel proud about their hometown or are eager to showcase how sophisticated, developed and progressive our small provincial city is to other Filipinos because we have all the aforementioned.

However, I find it to be a skewed notion of progress and development. Of course, I agree that we should invite more investments and capital to come to Iloilo. However, we should also not forget our own local corporate brands that, I think, must be nurtured and patronized continually by Ilonggos.

In my mind, call centers, taller buildings and the entry of big brand names from Manila and abroad is but only a part of the equation when we talk about a locality’s development.

After all, in the field of economics, businesses will always seek out the more cost effective locations to add profit and save on cost. If not, then to expand to a hitherto untapped market because Manila and Cebu are too saturated with competition already.

Fact is, we should not measure progress solely in terms of what comes to our city from the outside world. Our development starts in our own backyard in the form of entrepreneurship because it is through this that the city can truly be competitive and be developed in its own right.

I think then that the measure of a city’s level of development is not to be based only on how many investments are coming in from Manila and abroad, but rather if the city is good enough to be the headquarters of its locally established businesses that are savvy enough to be successful in other places outside its home market.

In short, can our city be the corporate headquarters or the base of operations of several companies that have national reach? The answer is yes and we have many examples of that. Corporate brand names like Queen City Development Bank, Sarabia Optical, Bombo Radyo Philippines, Mang Inasal Inc., Coffee Break, Ted’s La Paz Batchoy, and Waffle Time are some of Iloilo’s homegrown corporations that have national reach.

They may not be household names in the national consciousness but they sure are making their presence felt outside of Iloilo. What is amazing is that the abovementioned companies have expanded and have maintained a successful business model while remaining based in this small provincial city of ours and not in the country’s traditional center of business and commerce, Metro Manila.

A brief visit to the website of Queen City Development Bank reveals that it has branches up north like Pangasinan, in other Visayan cities such as Cebu and Bacolod, and down south in Cagayan de Oro and Davao.

In a similar vein, Bombo Radyo has stations all over the country and is a national force in broadcast journalism.

Mang Inasal, as we all know, has now more than 70 branches nationwide and counting. It is amazing considering that it was established only five years ago.

Sarabia Optical, one of the nation’s most respected brands when it comes to optics, has branches nationwide and preferred by many celebrities in Manila.

Coffee Break, on the other hand, is an upstart coffee chain that already has branches in Cabatuan (at the New Iloilo Airport) and Boracay, which proves that it can thrive outside its home territory.

Waffle Time is now synonymous to the word waffle since it has done to waffle what Starbucks has done to coffee: it has transformed the waffle from a boring snack available only in two flavors into one that can actually be tasted with a variety of fillings.

Ted’s Batchoy, on the other hand, has now popularized one of Iloilo’s well loved dishes in Metro Manila and beyond. Their presence is particularly strong in the southern part of the metropolis, particularly in the muntinlupa-cavite-laguna area where a number of their branches are found.

These local corporate brands and many others of their kind are significant, because their presence sends a message that Iloilo may be a small city—it may not be as highly developed and progressive as Cebu or as internationally linked as Metro Manila—but Iloilo’s homegrown corporations can surely compete on the national level.

Their success showcases not only the quality and strength of our business schools for producing top-notch entrepreneurs and corporate executives, but also shows that the market in Iloilo is strong and responsive enough to not only support business but also, robust enough to enable them to expand on the national level.

I guess we can say then that Iloilo is one of the handful of cities outside of Metro Manila that is developed and progressive enough to support the expansion of locally established corporations. After all, is there any city in Luzon (except Metro Manila) that has headquarters of a locally established company with nationwide reach? How about any other city in the Visayas besides Metro Cebu?

On the other hand, it has been demonstrated by these Iloilo-based corporations that our entrepreneurs do not need be based in Metro Manila or even Cebu to be nationally competitive and successful, for they can start right here in our city.

Give them enough time and who knows? These Ilonggo corporations might someday go international. It may be farfetched, yes, but they have potential and potential is what Iloilo has in abundance to offer.

These corporations and not only the brand names and big corporations from Manila, Cebu or abroad that we so fervently pray to come, say a lot about the character of our city because they are one of the indicators of the robustness of our local economy, a measure of the strength of our city, of the Ilonggos’ capacity to be nationally competitive, of our potential to be global despite being based in the province, of the progress and development of our hometown, Iloilo.
__________________________

End of article.