The Metro

High rises along Archbishop Reyes Ave.

Unchecked development

Metro Cebu is expanding rapidly. But with urbanization is the accompanying plethora of problems ranging from over-congestion to uncollected garbage, from heavy traffic to air pollution, from dwindling resources to lack of decent housing. The list can go on and on. And there's no agency or master plan to manage the growth the metro is experiencing. 

Cebu is an island with meager resources. If recent developments go unchecked, it can have its toll on the island's capacity to sustain the present growth.  The island's fragile ecosystem is damaged by centuries of deforestation, over-fishing, and abuse. Metro Cebu ought to make a conscious effort to revive its dead rivers, protect watersheds and preserve its mountains and coastal resources instead of continuing the present course of development.

With watersheds populated, mountains bulldozed and marshlands reclaimed to be used for expansion of towns and cities, how sustainable is the present growth?

Cebu City a-changin'


Cebu City is a city in transition. It is a city busy reinventing itself. All around the metropolis, new buildings have risen . Lately, Cebu City was ranked as the number one among the Top 50 Emerging Outsourcing Cities in the World besting other cities like Shanghai, Beijing, Hanoi, Buenos Aires, Sao Paulo and Ho Chi Minh City. (Read the rest of the article)

PROFILE | Cebu City, Queen City of the South


Cebu's port is home to most of the Philippines' shipping companies. It's not surprising as Cebu City has been, historically, the center of commerce, education, entertainment and information of Southern Philippines (more>>)


The ICT boom


The rise of China as a manufacturing behemoth and the Asian financial crisis led then mayor Alvin Garcia to look for alternatives . His administration saw a silver lining in the emerging global ICT industry. He convened an ICT summit in preparation for the anticipated boom of ICT-related industries and enabled services.
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SRP: Expanding the city 

After Tommy Osmena's successful return to City Hall in 2002, he once again oversaw the development of the South Reclamation Project which, by then, had drawn a lot of criticism. With the loan ballooning due to the Asian Financial Crisis, Osmeña's critics in the media accused the city government of sacrificing basic services for debt servicing.(Read the rest of the article here)

URBAN PLAN | Moving the Urban Center

Cebu City reaffirmed it is Southern Philippines' premier city after the end of the Marcos regime and some five decades after the end of world war 2. 

Lito Osmeña, first Cebu Grovernor after Marcos left, made tremendous impact on the city, although, he never served as chief executive just like his grandfather, Pres. Sergio Osmena. His conversion of non-productive provincial lots into real estate ventures during his lone term as governor from 1988-1991 paved the way for Cebu City's radical transformation.
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