An aerial view of downtown Cebu City with the CCLEX. CDN Digital photo | Brian J. Ochoa
CEBU CITY, Philippines – The economy in Central Visayas continues to grow as the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic have waned.
For 2022, the region posted an economic growth performance of 7.6 percent, the Philippine Statistics Authority here (PSA-7) announced on Thursday, April 27, 2023.
It was up by 2.2 percentage points from the 5.4 percent recorded in 2021, PSA-7 director Ariel Florendo said during Thursday’s press conference.
“The growth in 2022 was valued at P1.29 trillion. This is about P91.35 billion higher than in 2021,” said Florendo.
The PSA-7 released its findings for the Gross Regional Domestic Product (GRDP) and Gross Regional Domestic Expenditure (GRDE) of Central Visayas for 2022 in a press conference held in Mandaue City on Thursday.
A region’s economic performance is often measured by its GRDP and its GRDE.
Services are the biggest contributor to Central Visayas’ economic growth in 2022, accounting for 6.5 percent. It was followed by the Industry sector at 1.5 percent.
When the pandemic came in 2020, the region’s economy dipped to -9.5 percent as quarantines and restrictions hampered economic activities. Fortunately, in 2021, it rebounded to 5.4 percent.
While the aftermath of Typhoon Odette lingered during the first semester of 2022, report from PSA-7 showed that most major events that year have contributed to Central Visayas’ economic growth.
These included the full reopening of the Philippine economy, full resumption of sports and recreational events, return of face-to-face classes, the 2022 National Elections, mounting more flights connecting to and from destinations in the region, and a 203.4 percent growth in the number of tourist arrivals.
Central Visayas is composed of four provinces – Cebu, Bohol, Negros Oriental, and Siquijor. It is also where Cebu City, considered as the center of economic and commercial activities in the Visayas-Mindanao region, is located.
/bmjo
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