WITH a suspension order still in effect, the Manila City government seemed hell-bent on pursuing what it described as for the best interest of the country’s capital and seat of power—its very own reclamation projects in Manila Bay.
During a public hearing called for Albay Rep. Joey Salceda, in his capacity as chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, Manila City legal officer Veronica Lladoc hinted at taking “all legal avenues” for all three Manila Bay land development projects – the 148-hectare Solar City, the 419-hectare Horizon Manila, and the 318-hectare Manila Waterfront.
With a population of more than two million residents and sprawling businesses in the capital, Manila is with all certainty the most densely populated city in the world.
However, as indicated in its Human Development Index (HDI) score of 0.777, Manila is quite low compared to other cities including Hong Kong and Singapore) in advanced economies but it scored favorably compared to the cities of Cebu and Davao.
One of the reasons for its low HDI score is its population. The problem of overpopulation was first felt in Manila as early as 1933, and since then it has attracted migrants from all over the country as it continues to dominate the nation’s economic opportunities.
With Manila starting to be congested, the elite retreated to the suburbs, resulting in the development of New Manila in Quezon City as an exclusive residential community in the 1930s.
In addition, the postwar years witnessed not only the reconstruction of Manila but also the burgeoning of new areas like Makati (the financial district, which effectively replaced Binondo in Manila Chinatown) in the 1950s; Quezon City, Pasay, Pasig, and Paranaque, where residential subdivisions and exclusive residential villages flourished; Caloocan, Malabon, and Valenzuela, which were the industrial and manufacturing centers; and the rest of the cities, which became the new suburban areas.
Metro Manila has grown by an average of 261,030 in the last few years, which represents a 1.81% annual change. These population estimates and projections come from the latest revision of the UN World Urbanization Prospects. These estimates reflect the Urban agglomeration of Manila, which typically includes Manila's population in addition to adjacent suburban areas.
Manila is the capital and second-largest city of the Philippines and one of 16 cities that comprise Metro Manila, which has an overall population of 14.667 million based on the 2022 Census. The City of Manila has a population of over two million.
Worse, Manila’s population swells almost twice as much during the daytime as people from outside the city go to the capital city to work, do business, or attend classes in universities sprawling along the so-called University Belt.
The most recent census found that Tondo has become the most populous district, accounting for 38% of the total population, followed by Sampaloc (20.7%) and Santa Ana (10.7%).
Hence the need to decongest – or better yet, expand its area via land development, this time embarking on a comprehensive urban development plan.
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