TUGUEGARAO City—The National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) said here that advancements in the tourism industry, entrepreneurs, and internet connectivity have significantly contributed to the economic growth of the Cagayan Valley Region.
NEDA assistant regional director Ferdinand Tumaliuan said the regions diversified scenery and rich culture make the tourism industry a vital driving force in the region’s economy, along with enhancing physical and digital connectivity, as well as the growth of micro, small, and medium-sized firms.
Tumaliaun’s message confirmed the data the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) on Region 2’s 2023 Economic Performance Report, which showed that Cagayan Valley’s economy grew by 6.2 percent, with the services sector contributing the most at P199.8 billion, to the gross regional domestic product.
This followed by the industry sector with P127.4 billion, and agriculture, forestry, and fishery for a total of P119.9 billion.
“Our region’s economic performance is founded on its vision of an economy driven by agriculture, industry, and information technology-related companies. This is dependent on a dynamic environment that will be made available to micro, small, and medium-sized businesses in order to propel industrialization forward,” Tumaliuan said.
Meanwhile, Girme Bayucan, PSA Region 2 director , said Cagayan Valley’s good economic performance as shown in the most recent study demonstrated that the region has already recovered from the COVID-19 pandemic.
He said small enterprises that were severely impacted by the pandemic have reopened, and new economic activity has also emerged.
“For the agriculture sector, with a growth from 0.5 percent in 2022 to 2.2 percent in 2023, efforts were geared toward strengthening the productivity attributed to efforts to improve production efficiency, market access, and resilience to natural disasters,” Bayucan said.
The agriculture sector significantly contributed to the region’s economy through technology adoption, value chain initiatives, agribusiness initiatives, infrastructure investments, and climate-smart farming technologies, Tumaliaun said.