Davao City population up to 1.44M

DAVAO CITY—The city’s population hit 1.44 million based on the latest survey results released by the National Statistics Office (NSO) for 2010.

NSO said the spike in the city’s population from 1.36 million in 2007 was mainly due to migration of people from other areas.

The migration, according to NSO statistician Ma. Leah Magracia, was driven by the belief that the city “offers many opportunities as a hub of government, business and industries.”

Magracia said the city has a high population density of 593 persons per square kilometer. The city has a total land area of 2,443.6 square kilometers, which makes it the biggest city in the world in terms of land size.

Despite its economy slowing down last year due to problems confronting the manufacturing and mining sectors, Davao City remains a magnet for people seeking jobs from other areas, the National Economic Development Authority (Neda) said.

At least 200 of the country’s top companies operate in the city.

The city’s working population (age bracket 18-64) was 635,412. The city has an employment rate of 93.9 percent.

As of the 2011 labor force survey conducted by the NSO, the employment rate increased to 95.4 percent.

Maria Lourdes Lim, Neda Southern Mindanao director, said the city’s economy is driven mainly by the services sector.

But Lim said the Internet Communications Technology (ICT) sector in the city is expected to continue to grow. Ayan Mellejor and Judy Quiros, Inquirer Mindanao