By Manuel T. Cayon | Mindanao Bureau Chief
DAVAO CITY—This premier southern seaport is now a P214-billion economy but still wants to host more manufacturing companies to increase job absorption, an investment officer here said.
Ivan C. Cortez, chief of the City Investment Promotion Center, said this value was the total worth of all businesses in the city, of which P4.2 billion worth of businesses come from the new establishments that registered with the Business Bureau between January and November this year.
The worth of all businesses in the city was higher by P3 billion, compared to the P211 billion worth of businesses over the same period the previous year.
The outsourcing companies, shopping malls and the new entrant, 7-Eleven convenience stores, account for the big-value investments from 34,711 establishments that were issued mayor’s permits.
The P4.2 billion worth of new investments were accounted by the 4,880 new businesses. Some 29,831 businesses renewed their permits this year.
The total number of businesses that entered or renewed their permits this year was 3,000 short of the actual number that was expected this year. The Business Bureau recorded 5,630 new businesses, of which only 4,880 were finally issued permits. There were also 32,155 old businesses in 2014, of which only 29,831 renewed their permits.
Cortez said the lack or absence of economic zone in this city hindered the inflow of manufacturing companies interested to set up shop here, including a foreign company manufacturing plastic toys. He said only 5 percent of the businesses were into manufacturing.
Cortez also ruled out a saturation in the housing sector with the entry of more construction and housing companies. He said the market is still growing, with the influx of more migrants needing more housing units.
Councilor Danilo Dayanghirang, meantime, disclosed that the city’s P6.3-billion budget this year is P500 million bigger than last year, and was based on the increase of local collections and internal-revenue allotment (IRA).
The IRA this year was recorder at 50 percent of the entire budget.
Dayanghirang said P500 million of the budget would go to debt service, the bulk of which was the account from the previous acquisition of garbage bins and implementation of the solid waste-management program worth P700 million the previous year.
