Metro Iloilo–Guimaras

Metropolitan Iloilo–Guimaras (; ), also shortened as Metro Iloilo–Guimaras or Metro Iloilo, or simply MIG, is a metropolitan area in Western Visayas in the Philippines. It is located on the southeastern coast of Panay, including the nearby island province of Guimaras, and is surrounded by the Iloilo and Guimaras straits.

The metropolitan area comprises the highly urbanized Iloilo City; the regional agro-industrial center of Pavia; the municipalities of Cabatuan, Leganes, Oton, San Miguel, and Santa Barbara; and the island province of Guimaras, which includes its five municipalities: Jordan, Buenavista, Nueva Valencia, San Lorenzo, and Sibunag. It is the second-largest metropolitan area in the Visayas after Metro Cebu and serves as the center of trade and commerce in the region. According to the 2020 census, it has a total population of 1,007,945 people and a land area of .

The Metro Iloilo''–''Guimaras Economic Development Council (MIGEDC) is the agency responsible for planning and implementing economic growth and development initiatives for Metro Iloilo and the province of Guimaras. It was established through Executive Order No. 559, signed by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo on August 28, 2006.

History

The Metropolitan Iloilo Development Council (MIDC) was established through a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) on February 9, 2001, by the City of Iloilo and four nearby municipalities— Oton, Pavia, San Miguel, and Leganes—to foster collaborative approaches aimed at promoting economic growth and urbanization in the area.

Similarly, the Guimaras-Iloilo City Alliance (GICA) was formed through a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) on May 22, 2005, between Iloilo City and the Province of Guimaras. This alliance focuses on mutually beneficial economic development, with a special emphasis on tourism and infrastructure development.

The municipalities of Santa Barbara and Cabatuan, which host the new Iloilo International Airport, have also joined the metropolitan alliance, recognizing the importance of intermodal transportation links and tourism development to overall economic growth.

On August 28, 2006, the Metro Iloilo–Guimaras Economic Development Council (MIGEDC) was created through Executive Order No. 559, signed by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. The MIGEDC is tasked with formulating, coordinating, and monitoring programs, projects, and activities to accelerate the economic growth and development of Iloilo City, the municipalities of Oton, San Miguel, Pavia, Leganes, Santa Barbara, and Cabatuan in the Province of Iloilo, as well as the entire Province of Guimaras. This initiative supports the National Government’s Mega-Region Economic Development Strategy.

Economy

Metro Iloilo–Guimaras is one of the largest economic centers in the country, with Iloilo City at its core serving as the primary hub for trade, commerce, finance, technology, medical tourism, hospitality, real estate, tourism, education, and manufacturing. Key industries in the metropolitan area include port facility management, telecommunications infrastructure, utilities, agriculture, banking and finance, retail trading, real estate, tourism, and business process outsourcing (BPO).

Beyond the core city of Iloilo, Pavia stands out as the agro-industrial center of the region, with a robust manufacturing sector. It houses 39 manufacturing establishments producing a wide range of products for both domestic and export markets. Notable products include farm implements, milled rice, poultry and livestock feeds, noodles, soft drinks, dressed chicken, cooking oil, furniture, concrete products, polyurethane foam, and industrial and medical gases. Major manufacturing companies in Pavia include Coca-Cola Bottlers, Phils., Vitarich Corporation, Pryce Gases, Inc., Mandaue Foam Industries, Panay Tropical Grains Milling Corp., and Jaspe Light Steel Indus.

Guimaras, a province within the metropolitan area, thrives on its agricultural sector, with major products such as mangoes, palay, coconuts, livestock, poultry, and fish. The province also engages in tourism, fruit processing, coconut processing, fish farming, handicrafts, mining, quarrying, and lime production. Additionally, Metro Iloilo–Guimaras has a growing number of banks, contributing to its ranking as the third-largest area in the Philippines for bank savings deposits and accounts.

Infrastructure developments

Roads

Sen. Benigno S. Aquino Jr. Avenue, commonly referred to as Diversion Road, is the busiest and most significant thoroughfare in Metro Iloilo. It is an 8-lane main road with a protected bike lane and a 2-lane service road, connecting Iloilo City, Pavia, Santa Barbara, and the Iloilo International Airport. Other major roads in the metropolitan area include McArthur Drive, Cong. Narciso Monfort Boulevard, General Luna Street, CJ Ramon Avancena Street, E. Lopez Street, Pres. Corazon C. Aquino Avenue (Circumferential Road 1 or C1), Iznart Street, and Muelle Loney Street.

To address traffic congestion, the area features several vehicular overpasses or flyovers, such as the Infante Flyover and Jalandoni Flyover along General Luna Street in Iloilo City Proper, the Ungka and Aganan Flyovers in Pavia, and the Hibao-an and Buhang Flyovers along the Iloilo Circumferential Road. Aside from the existing Circumferential Road 1 which stretches from Balabago, Jaro, to San Jose, Arevalo, in Iloilo City, three new circumferential roads are also under construction: Circumferential Road 2, connecting Leganes to Pavia and Oton; Circumferential Road 3, linking Zarraga to Santa Barbara; and Circumferential Road 4, extending from Barotac Nuevo to Southern Iloilo.

A major ongoing infrastructure project is the Iloilo–Guimaras Bridge, part of the Panay-Guimaras-Negros Bridge, which will connect Metro Iloilo with the island of Guimaras.

Airport

The Iloilo International Airport serves the general area of Metro Iloilo–Guimaras. Located in the municipality of Cabatuan, specifically in Barangays Tabucan, Gaub, Duyan-Duyan, and Manguna, the airport is accessible via Sen. Benigno S. Aquino Jr. Avenue. The airport complex includes a single runway, administrative and maintenance buildings, waste sorting and water treatment facilities, a power generating station, a cargo terminal, and a main passenger terminal.

Situated along the Tomas Confesor Highway, a major thoroughfare traversing Panay, the airport is easily accessible by road from all parts of Iloilo and the island. Its proximity to the currently defunct Panay Railways network also presents the potential for future rail connectivity, linking the airport to other areas of Panay.

Seaport

The Port of Iloilo serves the general area of Iloilo, the rest of Panay Island, and Guimaras Island. There are five seaports in Metro Iloilo: the Iloilo Ferry Port and Terminal Complex, Iloilo River Port and Terminal Complex, Iloilo Domestic Port and Terminal Complex, Dumangas Ro-Ro Port and Terminal Complex, and the Iloilo Commercial Port Complex. The Iloilo Commercial Port Complex, now known as Visayas Container Terminal, located on of reclaimed land, features facilities such as an open operational space, cranes, rails, roll-on/roll-off support, a freight station, and a passenger shed.

Additionally, the Iloilo Fish Port Complex, the only fishing port complex in the Visayas, is located at the mouth of the Batiano River on a reclaimed land. The facility supports the region’s fishing industry and serves as a hub for fish trading and distribution.

Several shipping companies operate at the Port of Iloilo, including Aboitiz Shipping Company, Amigo Shipping Company, New Panay Shipping Company, Negros Navigation Company, Sulpicio Lines, William Lines, and Trans-Asia Shipping Lines. Fast ferries provide eight daily trips on the Iloilo-Bacolod route, while Negros Navigation and Superferry offer routes connecting Iloilo to other parts of the country.

Public-transport terminals

Iloilo City has six integrated transport terminals. These include:

# Northern Iloilo Integrated Jeepney and Bus Terminal in Tagbac, Jaro
# Central Line Jeepney and Bus Terminal in Ungka, Jaro
# Upland Jeepney and Bus Terminal in Hibao-an, Mandurriao
# Southern Coast Jeepney and Bus Terminal in Mohon, Arévalo
# North Coastal Jeepney and Bus Terminal in Ingore, La Paz
# Festive Walk Transport Hub in Iloilo Business Park, Mandurriao

Railway

There is a proposed revival of the currently defunct Panay Railways, which aims to reconnect Iloilo City to Santa Barbara. Santa Barbara, which has an existing railway station, is also home to the entrance of the Iloilo International Airport in Cabatuan.

Government

The Metro Iloilo–Guimaras Economic Development Council is made up of 12 local government units (LGUs), including Iloilo City, which serves as the metropolitan's central core, and six municipalities in Iloilo Province and five municipalities in Guimaras Province.

Component local government units

Education

Metro Iloilo–Guimaras is recognized as a prominent educational hub in the Philippines, with a total of nine universities. The following list represents some of the notable institutions in the metro:
* ACSI College Iloilo
* Cabalum Western College
* Central Philippine University
* Colegio de San Jose
* Colegio del Sagrado Corazon de Jesus
* Guimaras State University
* Hua Siong College of Iloilo
* Iloilo Doctors' College
* Iloilo Science and Technology University
* John B. Lacson Foundation Maritime University
* St. Paul University Iloilo
* St. Therese – MTC colleges
* University of Iloilo
* University of San Agustin
* University of the Philippines Visayas
* West Visayas State University
* Western Institute of TechnologyTwo new universities are also expected to expand in the area, the University of St. La Salle in Pavia and National University in Mandurriao, Iloilo City.

Metro Iloilo''–''Guimaras Economic Development Council

The Metro Iloilo–Guimaras Economic Development Council, or MIGEDC, was formally established by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo through Executive Order No. 559, signed on August 28, 2006. It evolved from the Metro Iloilo Development Council (MIDC) that was earlier established by the City of Iloilo and four neighboring municipalities of Leganes, Oton, Pavia, and San Miguel on February 9, 2001, and the Guimaras''–''Iloilo City Alliance (GICA) that was similarly established on May 22, 2005. Through Executive Order No. 559, the municipality of Santa Barbara became an addition together with the province of Guimaras. After the opening of the new Iloilo International Airport in the municipality of Cabatuan in 2007, the town was also added to the metropolitan.

During the MIGEDC press conference in March 2022, Iloilo City Mayor and MIGEDC Chairman Jerry P. Treñas revealed that the municipalities of Dumangas and Zarraga had expressed their intention to join the MIGEDC in the near future. Velma Jane Lao, MIGEDC Executive Director, is also on the work on the expansion of the council and will be confirming if the other municipalities that have long signified to join are still interested.

As a strengthened task group, the MIGEDC formulates, implements, coordinates, and monitors programs, projects, and activities that support the Mega-Region Economic Development Strategic Framework of the National Government. It was designed to help address the area’s emerging problems brought about by rapid urbanization and the spatial development challenges of tourism and economic development. The MIGEDC is gearing up to become a Smart Metropolitan.

The MIGEDC is composed of the following:

* Mayor, Iloilo City as Chairperson
* Provincial Governor, Province of Guimaras as Co-Chairperson
* Mayor, Municipality of Pavia, Iloilo
* Mayor, Municipality of San Miguel, Iloilo
* Mayor, Municipality of Oton, Iloilo
* Mayor, Municipality of Leganes, Iloilo
* Mayor, Municipality of Sta. Barbara, Iloilo
* Mayor, Municipality of Cabatuan, Iloilo
* President, League of Municipalities, Province of Guimaras

See also

* Metro Manila
* Metro Cebu

References

External links

Metro Iloilo–Guimaras Economic Development Council
– Official website
*

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