2015 First Q uar ter Reg ional Economic Situationer
ZamPen in Review: Regional Economic Situationer A First Quarter Issue CY 2015 Overview The long dry spell in Mindanao has taken its toll on farmers and adversely affected the agriculture production in Zamboanga Peninsula during the first quarter of 2015. Production of the majority of the region’s high value crops declined such as palay, abaca, mango and rubber. Meanwhile, the production of corn, coconut, cassava and banana, as well as, cabbage, coffee, eggplant, tomato and peanut increased during the period. Peanut reported the highest production increment of 17.11 percent. Peanut is a drought tolerant plant. On the other hand, production of other crops, such as, cacao, calamansi, camote, durian, mongo, pineapple and tobacco also decreased. Among these crops, tobacco was the most affected with a decrease in production of 86.60 percent. The overall fisheries production slumped by 7.62 percent despite the increase in municipal fishing.
Despite the decline in commercial livestock production at 16.71 percent, the overall livestock production still grew by 2.53 percent. The decrease was attributed to production cuts recorded in Zamboanga del Norte, Zamboanga del Sur, and Zamboanga Sibugay. Inflation rate in the region slightly increased from 4.0 percent in December 2014 to 4.1 percent in January 2015 due to increases in petroleum prices.
Labor force grew by 2.8 percent and labor force participation rate by 0.6 percent as well. Underemployment rate reduced from 19.1 percent in 2014 to 16.7 percent in 2015. Page 1
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Business name registration classified either as newly established business or renewal for already established businesses posted growth by 18.8 percent, from 2,024 in the 1st quarter of 2014 to 2,405 during the same period in 2015. The region remained peaceful in the 1st quarter of 2015. Total crime volume fell at 25.9 percent. All types of crime, both index and non-index, declined except rape and homicide. Agriculture and Fisheries Production Palay and Corn Palay production in the region during the 1st quarter of 2015 declined by 5.17 percent from 205,315 metric tons in 2014 to 194,702 metric tons in 2015 despite the increase in palay production in the provinces of Zamboanga del Norte and Zamboanga Sibugay. The huge drop in the region’s palay production was attributed to the dry spell brought about by El Niño. The El Niño is a phenomenon caused by the abnormal warming of the central and eastern Pacific waters, generally manifests in dry spell, or below normal rainfall, usually following wet conditions. Palay farms were dried up beyond recovery considerably reducing palay production. Much of El Niño’s effect was felt among farmers Page 2
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in Zamboanga del Sur and Zamboanga City where palay production decreased by 15.74 percent and 14.96 percent, respectively.
Area harvested with palay in the region decreased by 1.22 percent from the 1st quarter of 2014 to the same period in 2015. Although a minimal increase in area harvested was recorded in Zamboanga Sibugay, the decrease in area harvested in the other areas of the region contributed to the low palay production. The slight decrease in yield per hectare in Zamboanga City (5.37%) influenced the overall decline in yield per hectare in the region at 4.07 percent. However, yield per hectare in the provinces of Zamboanga del Norte, Zamboanga del Sur and Zamboanga Sibugay increased at 5.00 percent, 13.81 percent and 0.52 percent, respectively. Due to insufficient supply of water and hot temperature which affected palay production during the 1st quarter of 2015, it was reported that some farmers hesitated applying farm inputs such as certified palay seeds and fertilizers. Meanwhile, corn production increased during the quarter, from 36,224 Page 3
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metric tons in 2014 to 38,104 metric tons or an increase of 5.19 percent. The bountiful harvest recorded in Zamboanga Sibugay and Zamboanga del Sur boosted the region’s corn production despite the huge drop in production in Zamboanga City (-23.50%) and Zamboanga del Norte (-10.67%).
The decrease in area harvested and yield per hectare in Zamboanga City resulted to low corn production in the city that affected the overall corn production of the region during the quarter. Zamboanga del Norte’s decreased production was attributed to the decline in area harvested. Although Zamboanga del Sur recorded increased production during the
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quarter but yield per hectare of cornfield was low.
According to the Philippine Statistics Authority like palay, cornfields have been devastated by the onslaught of a continuing dry spell in the region. Champion Products and High Value Crops
Among the region’s champion products, only the production of coconut, cassava and banana increased during the quarter at 1.33 percent, 2.24 percent, and 0.67 percent, respectively.
More coconut bearing trees were harvested in Zamboanga del Sur, Zamboanga Sibugay and Zamboanga City as demand for fresh buko juice in these areas increased. The modest increase in banana production was due to increases in Lacatan and Latundan, two of the top three varieties in the region. Quality planting materials and application of good farming techniques contributed in the growth in cassava production. Rubber production decreased by 0.86 percent, from 25,383.2 metric tons in 2014 to 25,165.6 metric tons in 2015. Rubber is a tropical tree crop which is mainly g r o w n for the industrial production of latex. Although dry spells do not a f f e c t vegetative Page 5
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growth, they reduce latex yield. The pro-longed dry spell and very high temperature experienced in the region resulted to the early occurrence of a condition called “wintering”. Wintering is manifested by shedding of leaves. When weather is too dry, it is not suitable to tap rubber. If weather patterns during the time of leaf formation were exceptionally dry, the tree’s recovery is expected to be slow, reducing the overall production of the rubber. Other Crops
Only cabbage, coffee, eggplant, peanut and tomato registered positive production growth rates during the 1st quarter of 2015. Peanut recorded the highest increase in production at 17.1 percent. Peanut is relatively drought tolerant. Peanut farmers apply supplemental irrigation during prolonged dry spell. Quality and yield of peanuts during dry season are better.
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Cacao, calamansi, camote, durian, mongo, pineapple, and tobacco posted big cuts in production especially tobacco which decreased by 86.6 percent from 16.6 metric tons in 2014 to 2.2 metric tons in 2015. Like other agricultural crops, the extreme weather phenomenon has caused the low-yield of tobacco in the region. Fisheries Production
The region’s overall fisheries production registered a decrease of 7.62 percent or 11,060 metric tons. Zamboanga del Norte, Zamboanga Sibugay and Zamboanga City recorded declines in fisheries production of 6.65 percent, 4.53 percent and 16.02 percent, respectively. Only Zamboanga del Sur recorded an increase, a slight 4.07 percent from 21,308.82 metric tons during the 1st quarter of 2014 to 22,175.81 metric tons in the same period in 2015. There are four (4) types of fisheries production in the region, mainly: municipal, commercial, aquaculture and seaweeds. Among these
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types of production, only municipal fishing recorded an increase, from 30,318.13 metric tons in 2014 to 32,494.54 metric tons in 2015 or 7.18 percent. Zamboanga del Norte had the biggest share of the total regional production at 37 percent.
The low fish catch in commercial fishing was expected given the implementation of the three-month ban on sardines fishing in East Sulu Sea, Basilan Strait and Sibuguey Bay from December 1, 2014 to March 1, 2015 to give the said species time to spawn. Unloading of other fish species like anchovies and matambaka were also recorded in the municipal landing centers in Zamboanga del Sur. Insufficient inputs in brackish water fishponds and the dry spell that affected the level of fresh water fishponds contributed to the decline in aquaculture fisheries production. The extreme heat and occurrence of “ice-ice� disease also affected the seaweeds production in the region during the quarter. Inventory of Livestock
The slump of 16.7 percent in commercial swine production was attributed also to the hot weather condition experienced in the region. The production in Zamboanga del Norte was reduced to more than
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half, i.e., from 4,503 heads in 2014 to 1,882 heads in 2015. On the other hand, production in Zamboanga City increased by 9.3 percent during the period. The growth of 20 percent in commercial poultry farming was mainly due to the high growth in production in Zamboanga del Norte, at 278.6 percent. Humid temperature can cause discomfort and stress among animals. Stress, in general, can lower the animals’ resistance or immune competence, thus making them more susceptible to diseases. An animal that is under stress gains less weight in a longer period of time and results to lower milk and lower egg production, or higher incidence of reproductive failures.
Nevertheless, the overall livestock inventory coming from commercial and backyard farming in the region increased during the quarter in review. The number of chicken rose by 11.1 percent or 628,896 more chicken in 2015 than in 2014, while swine increased by 2.5 percent or 12,472 additional swine. Investments
Zamboanga City is the center of convergence of business activities and the melting pot for trade and commerce in the Peninsula Region. It has Page 9
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a modern seaport and airport that serve as the gateway of goods to the rest of the country and the world. As such, it hosts the biggest number of investors in the region. About 30.5 percent of the total number of business establishments registered in the region are located in Zamboanga City. The others are in Zamboanga del Norte (29.1%), Zamboanga del Sur (24.0%), Zamboanga Sibugay (12.4%) and Isabela City (3.7%).
Of the 2,024 businesses registered in the region during the 1st quarter of 2014, there were 1,588 or 78.4 percent newly registered/established. In 2015, the total number of registered business increased by 18.8 percent or an addition of 381. About 80.1 percent of which were newly registered/established business. During the quarter in review, only Zamboanga del Sur posted a decrease in the number of registered business at 20.4 percent, from 728 in 2014
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to 579 in 2015. The number of business registration in the other parts of the region recorded an increase, either as newly established business or renewal for already established businesses. Labor and Employment
The January 2015 Labor Force Survey showed that labor force participation rate increased by 0.6 percentage point from 62.4 percent in January 2014 to 63.0 percent in January 2015. The increase in the number of individuals available for work accompanied by increases in employment opportunities raised employment rate by 1.7 percentage points from 95.8 percent in the 1st quarter of 2014 to 97.5 percent during the same period in 2015. The quality of jobs during the quarter was generally better with the decrease in underemployment rate by 2.4 percentage points. The region’s unemployment rate also declined,
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and was the second lowest among the six regions in Mindanao. This implies that 37,000 people among the region’s labor force of 1.4 million remained jobless.
The Department of Labor and Employment and the Philippine Overseas Employment Authority, in partnership with the Public Employment Service Office (PESO) in the region, conducted job fairs in different provinces, cities and municipalities during the 1st quarter of 2015. A total of 15 job fairs were conducted during the period. A job fair, also referred as a career fair or career expo, is an exposition for employers, recruiters, and schools to meet with prospective job seekers. Legitimate recruitment agencies/establishments and employers from the cities of Manila, Dipolog, Zamboanga and Cebu were invited to conduct interviews and screening of the applicants. Participating agencies of the job fair were looking for civil engineers, electrical engineers, construction workers, domestic helpers and medical workers for Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Kuwait, United Arab Emirates and Qatar.
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The 1st quarter job fairs were participated by 190 establishments and employers coming from the different parts of the country. It has solicited a total of 66,834 job vacancies but only 3,115 job applicants were registered under DOLE or PESO, or a registration rate of 4.7 percent. This implies that only 4.7 percent of the members of the region’s labor force were able to meet the job requirements of the solicited vacancies during the fair. The activity resulted in the employment of 130 job applicants who were hired on the spot (HOTS), 32 of whom were female. As regards the job search assistance through the PESOs in the region, job vacancies solicited/reported totaled to 51,611 but only 6,133 job applicants were registered, or 12%. This denotes that despite the numerous solicited job vacancies or demand for labor, only 12% of the region’s labor supply was able to do the first step, which is to register. These job applicants were referred either for job placement and/or training or employability enhancement. Of the 3,582 job applicants placed for hiring, 1,492 were hired by the private sector (or 41.7%) and 366 of whom were female. The rest of the 2,090 job applicants were hired by the government sector (or 58.3%) and 384 of whom were female. Meanwhile, Private Recruitment and Placement Agencies (PRPAs) employed 256 job applicants while Job/Service Contractors/Subcontractors hired 14 job applicants during the period. Prices
Albeit slowly, the prices of petroleum products have continuously increased since January 2015. The region’s average inflation rate slightly increased from 4.0 percent in December 2014 to 4.1 percent in January 2015. According to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), this was due to the inflation rate increases in housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels. However, inflation rate fell to its lowest level recorded in the Page 13
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region since 2013 (Figure 3) at 3.2 percent in March 2015.
Indices of all commodity groups fell except education. Inflation rate for education remained at 4.3 percent from January to March 2015, which was still higher by 1.0 percentage point compared to the same period in 2014. This is primarily due to the increase in miscellaneous expenses in the primary and secondary schools and colleges/universities specifically towards the end of the school year. PSA data showed that Zamboanga Peninsula’s inflation rate during the 1st quarter of 2015 was slightly higher compared to other Mindanao regions, while Northern Mindanao (Region X) registered the lowest (Figure 4). Cost differential in transporting the fuel to the region is one of the factors affecting the much higher oil prices in the region. Peace and Order
The region remained peaceful during the quarter in review. Total crime volume decreased by 25.9 percent compared to the same period in 2014. This was due to the decrease in both index crimes and non-index crimes by 20.9% and 29.3%, respectively (Table 11). Page 14
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The significant decrease in the overall crime rate in the region can be attributed to the intensified police visibility patrols being implemented in all provinces and cities in the region, and the regular conduct of inspections by Unit Commanders. All types of crimes decreased except for rape and homicide which increased by 34.7% and 22.2%, respectively. Cases of rape increased in all provinces during the period. Zamboanga Sibugay registered the highest incidence of rape cases at 81.8% of the provincial total. This was followed by Zamboanga del Norte, 60.0%, Zamboanga del Sur, 29.0%, and Zamboanga City, 5.9% (Figure 5). This can be attributed to the escalation of illegal substance (drugs) trading in the region, and Page 15
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the negative effects of media and other social networking sites on the viewing public. The increased awareness of victims and their families to whom to report and improved recording of incidents may also have contributed to the increase in reported cases.
As for homicide, it was highest in Zamboanga del Sur at 38.1%, followed by Zamboanga City, 21.4%, Zamboanga Sibugay, 18.2% and Zamboanga del Norte, 5.9%. Clan fighting and crime of passion are some of the reasons for the increase.
During the 1st quarter of 2015, Zamboanga Sibugay had the most number of solved and cleared crimes while Zamboanga del Norte registered with the lowest number of both solved and cleared crimes in the region (Table 12). A crime is considered solved when the suspect is identified, the case is filed in court, and the suspect is detained or arrested. A crime is considered cleared when the case is filed in court but the identified suspect remains at-large. Page 16
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As regards the average monthly crime rate (AMCR), Zamboanga City had the most number of crimes committed at 52 per 100,000 population or an AMCR of 202.4% in 2015. Zamboanga Sibugay had 12 per 100,000 population or an AMCR of 45.3% in 2014 compared to the 34.4% recorded in the same period a year ago. The decline in AMCR in the provinces of Zamboanga del Norte and Zamboanga del Sur generally influenced the region’s AMCR from 433.1% in 2014 to 91.2% in 2014.
Development Prospects During the 5th ZamPen Rubber Industry Cluster Team (RICT) meeting, Engr. Arnold L. Yap of DTI IX presented the Action Plan of the ZamPen RICT for 2015-2016. The plan includes the operationalization of the Rubber Testing Laboratory facilities in Zamboanga Sibugay, Zamboanga del Sur, Zamboanga City and Isabela City. These facilities are intended to improve the rubber industry in the region. Skills training such as rubber tapping and post-harvest technology will be conducted this year by the DA-ZAMPIARC Agricultural Training Institute, DTI, TESDA, DOLE and DOST to capacitate the rubber farmers of the region. The signing of the Multi-Sectoral Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) creating the Bantay Kalikasan Task Force between the nine coastal municipalities of the third district of Zamboanga del Norte is designed Page 17
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to intensify the fight against illegal fishing and other related illegal activities in the area. This is spearheaded by the Office of Congressman Isagani Amatong of the province’s 3rd district and the 10th Infantry Battalion of the 101st Infantry Brigade. The other signatories to the MOA are the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources IX, Department of Environment and Natural Resources IX, Philippine Maritime Police IX, Philippine Coast Guard IX and the Philippine National Police IX.
The Department of Labor and Employment IX recently launched the Labor Management Cooperation (LMC) Convergence Program. The program aims to improve industry workers’ conditions, and to enhance productivity in their workplaces. The LMC guidelines emphasize that all plant-level DOLE programs and services shall be delivered through one plant-level structure. This means that programs on workers’ productivity, occupational safety and health, family welfare, grievances and labor laws compliance shall be coursed through one single mechanism through organized plant-level committees. LMC is a vehicle for a harmonious, productive and safe working environment for both the employee and employer. This would strengthen industrial peace and maintain favorable environment for economic activity in the region.
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