Economic Profile
The economic structure of the City of Santiago is dominated by the service sector with an 84% in revenues, followed by manufacturing, at 16%, and agriculture at 0.22%. In terms of number of establishments, 93% is from the service economy, 7% from manufacturing, 0.26% in agriculture.
The top enterprises are in the service economy, specifically wholesale and retail trade, tourism(accommodation and food services), health and social work, financial intermediation, other services, and real estate and renting.
Accordingly in the 2017 HPSM Survey, 24,241 workers or 74.14% labor force dominated the service industry (tertiary sector), followed by manufacturing and construction industry (secondary sector) with 4,623 workers or 14.14%, and the agriculture and mining industry (primary sector) with 3,832 or 11.72% of the workforce.
Primary- Agriculture
The dominant land use classification of the City is agricultural, where palay is its main produce. Rice is the major crop produced by 8550 farmers in the 27 agricultural barangays over a 9,070.88 hectares of agricultural lands in the City. Of these vast production area, 14% of rice production is consumed by the city, while the rest is being distributed for commerce and trade.
Other production areas are devoted to industrial crops such as corn and cassava, with around 500 hectares cultivated. Vegetables and high value crops such as peanut and mungbean. Mango is the primary fruit produced in the city and is cultivated in more than 200 hectares of orchards with 16,833 fruit-bearing trees.
Heritage and specialty crops such as sugarcane is also produced to make muscovado, basi, patupat, and pulitipot.
There are about 24 fish producing barangays with an aggregate area of 242 hectares devoted to commercial and backyard fishponds. The average production is 2,055 metric tons per year.
Livestock produced in the city include hog, poultry, duck, cattle and carabao. Hog production is dominated by 22 commercial hog producers, with an average range production of 3,000-4,000 heads annually.
Poultry production is operated by 5 commercial poultry growers producing an average of 500,000 heads per year.
Around 400 farmers were registered as cattle/carabao farmers according to the city treasury.
Secondary- Manufacturing and Industrial Establishments
Currently, there are 438 manufacturing and industrial establishments operating in the City. This is dominated by 253 manufacturing and processing firms and 97 construction firms. 88 companies are engaged in water supply, sewerage, and waste management.
The primary manufacturing industries are in food processing, bakery, and noodle manufacturing. Construction and supply of construction materials and aggregates, concrete hollow blocks, and steel are also significant industries extending its reach across the region.
Tertiary- Trade, Commerce and Services
As the biggest sector of the economy, the service economy is heavily dependent on local commodities for its products and services, specifically in agricultural trading and processing of rice and corn.
The major industries in the service sector include wholesale and retail trade (49%), tourism (16%), other services (12.3%), real estate and renting (7.22%), and financial intermediation (6%). Health services and education are also major drivers of the service economy in the City.
As a trading and commercial hub, City of Santiago is the center of convergence for sellers and buyers coming as far as Bayombong in the south and Aparri in the north. Markets are critical nodal points of convergence where consumers and intermediate users are able to get the products they want at reasonable prices both for the seller and the buyer.
The City of Santiago’s Public Market is considered as one of the biggest distribution and trading centers in the Philippines with an aggregate area of 6.962 hectares more or less composing the old and new public market district.
In 2018, the City Permits & License Inspection Office (CPLIO) recorded a total business registration of 360 financial and lending institutions to include 39 banks, 35 pawnshops, 27 cooperatives, 35 insurance companies, 49 lending investors, 49 financial and investment companies and 25 money changers.
The city registered an average annual increase of 9.58% (2011-2018) in the number of business registrations. In fact in 2018, a total of 5,259 business establishments were registered. These businesses are classified as wholesale and retail with an economic value of PhP 136,558,368.94 as business tax revenue collected by the City.
Various business investments are also established in the city. The Robinsons Land Corporation launched Robinsons Place Santiago as its pioneer mall in Cagayan Valley. The Vista Land and Lifescapes, Inc. also ventured in the region by establishing Camella Isabela, Camella Santiago and All Home.
Tourism
Tourism industry is primarily measured in terms of the accommodation and food service sub-sector available in the City. The hubs for tourists and visitors account for the accommodation facilities, financial, communication, medical, and shopping facilities, as well restaurants and food centers. With 774 bed capacity in 2018, we hope to reach 1,000 to 1,500 bed capacity in the years to come.
In 2018, about Php825Million gross receipts was generated from tourism activities and directly employed 2254 work force. This is a significant contribution to improve tourism vibrancy and continue to accelerate at an average growth rate of 17% since 2016.
Local tourists arrivals increased in number from 2016-2018 and recorded an annual average growth rate of 16%, while foreign tourists grew at a more aggressive rate of 19.5%. Around 600,000 to 700,000 tourists visited the City in 2018.
The development of natural attractions such as the Amulungan and Sisim lakes will draw more visitors, as well as the construction of the Dariuk Hills Theme Park, the Santiago Sports Complex, and the Santiago Convention Center. These facilities will hopefully increase revenues in an enormous proportion to local income.
The Dariuk Hills at Balintocatoc which includes the La Salette Transfiguration Chapel, the 14 New Stations of the Cross, the gigantic Our Lady of La Salette Shrine, the Timpuyog Village (features the traditional houses of the 16 major cultural communities in Luzon), and the Balay na Santiago at Calao West are just among the tourist attractions in the city.
The City now serves as the jump-off point to the various world class tourist destinations in the region.