Mayor Thomas Mark Durano. | Photo grabbed from the video of the Danao City Investment Forum on Saturday, July 8
MANDAUE CITY, Cebu — Danao City in northern Cebu is opening its doors to more investments in order to achieve its dream of becoming a model of sustainable development in the Province of Cebu and the rest of the country.
Mayor Thomas Mark Durano said that as a long-term goal, they hoped to also become a smart city or an urban area that would use digital solutions for the benefit of its inhabitants and businesses.
In order to achieve all these, Durano said they would need additional investments in their city. But he said that these investments should be eco-friendly.
“Danao City from here and now is more than ready to embrace and push forward aggressively the development we aspire that sooner or later Danao City would become a model of sustainable development not just for our neighboring LGUs but to the entire island of Cebu and of the Philippines,” he said in a message which he delivered during an investment forum that the city organized on Saturday, July 8.
Next growth center
Durano said that JICA, under its Metro Cebu Roadmap for Sustainable Urban Development, “had identified Danao City as the next growth center in Cebu in the north.”
He said that their city would produced at least 3, 000 graduates per year who would be more than qualified to work in existing businesses and even the new businesses that would open in their city soon.
Durano said they also would have the infrastructure that would be needed to start a business in their locality.
Internet connectivity, for example, is not a problem there. Citing the outcome of a recent speed test, Durano said that connectivity in their city was at a minimum of 60 MBPS.
With this, he said that Information Technology and Business Process Management (IT BPM) would be very much welcome in Danao.
“Danao is open for investments and we are more than ready to accept your investments in the city,” said Ramon “Red” Durano VI, head of the Danao City Investment and Promotions Center (DCIPC).
Seamless process
Franco Soberano, executive vice president and chief operating officer of Cebu Landmasters, said they too had expanded their business in Danao City.
“The timing is perfect because there is so much momentum. There’s so much jobs coming to Danao,” said Soberano who was one of the participants of the investment forum.
Soberano credited the local government for its good governance and the support that they give to businesses, the reason for its continued growth.
He recalled that when they applied for local permits, “it was very seamless for us.”
Like any other businesses, they underwent the rigorous review process, but this was done with the city government being mindful of their business targets, Soberano said.
Michael Jimenez, president and chief executive officer of Integrated Green Technology, said they would soon set up a waste to energy facility in Danao City.
Like Soberano, he also expressed his appreciation to the city government for the seamless process in the application of local permits.
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