About Tagbilaran
The City of Tagbilaran admitted that unlike other cities, they do not have a strong distinct industry. Although it is known to be the center of commerce, governance, education and transportation in the Province of Bohol, roughly 10 percent of the city’s total land area is devoted to agriculture. The services industry plays a major role in the City’s economy. As of 2004, this 2nd class City has more than 4,500 registered businesses, including 23 banks, 32 hotels and pension houses, eight colleges and universities, 54 restaurants and fastfood chains, five shopping centers and supermarkets.
Scores in Quality of Life for Small Cities
| Rank | City | (Score) 1. Tagbilaran (7.66) 2. Naga (7.16) 2. San Fernando (7.16) 3. Legaspi (7.08) 4. Sorsogon (6.87) 5. Olongapo (6.85) 6. Silay (6.75) 7. Tagum (6.56) 7. Roxas (6.56) 8. Tacloban (6.53) 9. Dapitan (6.49) 10. Tuguegarao (6.38) 11. Surigao (6.28) 11. Dipolog ( 6.28) 11. San Carlos (6.28) 12. Panabo (6.25) 13. Dagupan (6.24) 14. Dumaguete (6.21) 15. Tagaytay (6.18) 16. Puerto Princesa (6.05) 17. Gingoog (5.91) 18. Digos (5.83) 18. Oroquieta (5.83) 19. Koronadal (5.82) 20. Lucena (5.76) 21. Ormoc (5.75) 22. Sta. Rosa ( 5.62) 23. Cavite (5.58) 24. Tacurong (5.52) 25. Valencia (5.49) 26. Ozamis (5.41) 27. Bislig (5.37) 28. Cotabato (5.27) 29. Pagadian (5.17) 30. Bago (5.05) 31. Cadiz (4.88) 32. Marawi (4.78) |
With its strategic geographic location, Tagbilaran City is the gateway of the booming tourism industry of Bohol province. Furthermore, the City’s proximity to Cebu also makes Tagbilaran an alternative spot for businessmen and investors since it is a less populated and less polluted place to do business.
Among the small cities, Tagbilaran got an overall competitiveness score of 6.47 making it to the most competitive small cities level. The City got the highest scores in two indicators under the Quality of Life driver. These are adequate rest and recreational facilities and conduciveness of security environment for business. Today, Tagbilaran is one of the most promising tourist destinations in the country and is a jump off point to nearby spots like Panglao Island, Chocolate Hills, the Loboc River and Danao. Results show that the City is also competitive in terms of the number of tertiary educational institutions to population ratio which lead to a third rank in the Quality of Human Resources and Training driver.
PCCRP 2005 Seven Drivers Results: Tagbilaran
| Drivers (Score) | Rank |
| Cost of Doing Business (6.36) Dynamism of Local Economy (4.58) Linkages and Accessibility (6.73) Human Resources and Training (7.36) Infrastructure (6.30) Responsiveness of LGUs to Business Needs (6.29) Quality of Life (7.56) |
5 25 4 3 14 14 1 |
Furthermore, the City ranked fourth in Linkages and Accessibility and fifth in Cost of Doing Business. The FGD cited the following as the City’s major strengths: a gateway to the province’s booming tourism industry; high level of remittances from the OFWs which resulted in the mushrooming of banks; a center of education in the whole province; presence of paved major road networks, relatively easy and quick processing of business permits; sufficient information and communications technology infrastructure, cheap power and water rates; and low incidence of major and petty crimes, among others. Interestingly, the FGD participants took note of the unique offering of the City Government of a unique six-day work-week for those seeking the LGU services through an effective and unique management of employees’ schedules, making services more rapid and accessible.
Several weaknesses, according to the FGD participants, also hamper the City’s competitive growth. These are: slow and insufficient infrastructure development to accommodate the influx of tourists, increasing traffic congestion, air and water pollution and lack of effective waste management schemes.
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Source: PINOY CITIES ON THE RISE 2005
Philippine Cities Competitiveness Ranking Project
Asian Institute of Management Policy Centre 2004
