A. Land Cover and Distribution
Bukidnon’s land area of 1,049.859 sq.km. is the 4th largest in terms of size amongst the 81 provinces of the country. Of this, 36 percent (380,332.75 has.) is classified as Alienable and Disposable (A & D) while 64% percent (669,526.25 has.) is Forest Land. A & D of the province accounts for 40.66% of the region and 9.21 percent of the whole Mindanao Island. Forestland on the other hand comprised about 61.80 percent of the region and 11.02 percent of Mindanao’s total forestland.
SAFDZs defined under Ra 8435 otherwise known as the Agriculture and Fisheries Modernization Act (AFMA) of 1997 are prime and contiguous agricultural areas suitable for productive farming, particularly for the production of priority agricultural commodities. The total SAFDZ areas of the province covers about 227,720 hectares. SAFDZ for the province is an important consideration given the province’s role as the food basket of region 10.
B. Major Agricultural Crops
The agriculture, fishery and forestry sector dominates all the other major industries in the province. This is understandably because of the role the province assumed for the regional economy which is as a major producer of food and other agricultural products for region 10. The sector is the biggest employment generator contributing about 69 percent of all employment generated within the period 2008-2012. The major crops that have so far contributed significantly to the agriculture sector production are corn, Palay, Sugarcane, Pineapple, Banana, Cassava, Coconut, Coffee, Rubber and Abaca
C. Manufacturing
The manufacturing sector in Bukidnon is highly dominated by the processing of major agricultural products like fruits, vegetables, rice, corn, sugarcane, rubber, poultry and livestock. The sector only contributes about 1 percent of total investments in the province. It is thus apparently a sector that is yet to be developed. It can be noted however that there are potentials that abound for the sector. Livestock processing and feed milling for instance could be a viable endeavor given the prominent livestock industry in the province. Palm oil processing could also be expanded given the growing demand for palm oil production in Asia. Bio-ethanol production is also a promising venture as this is primarily sourced from sugarcane which is essentially the third most grown crop in the province. An investor has already in fact secured tax incentives from the BOI to build and operate its proposed Php4.08 Billion Bio-ethanol integrated facility. There is also the prospect of value adding through manufacturing/processing of vegetable and fruit products which also abounds in the province.
D. Services
Services is the second source of investments and employment in the province. It contributed about 17 percent to investments and 16 percent to employment. For the period 2000-2009, a total of 12,850 business establishments are registered with the DTI. Micro-enterprises dominate this figure with about 98 percent of all registered business establishment.
E. Tourism Industry
Bukidnon is being eyed as agri-tourism sites mentioned during the Euromoney Philippine Investment Forum and suggested during the February 2013 Philippine Development Forum hosted by the World Bank. Fresnoza4 (2013) suggests that the combination of agriculture and tourism presents a massive potential for economic development especially in the rural areas. This will accordingly promote wealth creation in the rejuvenation of hinterland economies; job generation and higher income for farmers and the
food industry.
food industry.
One of the most prominent tourism attractions the province is endowed with is the Mt. Kitanglad Natural Park. Bukidnon as a province is also dotted with several historical sites (e.g.Hiroshima Shrine, Japanese Garrison, etc.).
F. Mining and Quarrying
Two of the most commonly found minerals in the province are chromite and gold. Other metallic mineral resources include copper, nickel and manganese. Non-metallic minerals on the other hand include volcanic slabs and silica quartz, feldspar, guano/phosphate, limestone, sand and gravel and schist. The prospect for the mining industry in Bukidnon is still yet to be established. As of 2013, a total of 42 minerals and explorations permit applications are on process to determine volume of deposits for nickel, chromite, cobalt, gold, copper and manganese. The areas covered for the application include the municipalities of Malitbog, Impasugong, San Fernando, Libona, Manolo Fortich, Quezon, Kibawe, Kitaotao, Talakag and the municipalities of Malaybalay and Valencia. Quarrying of sand and gravel is also widespread in the province. A total of 81 quarry and small scale mining permits were issued in the province in 2012. Most activities in this respect is related to quarrying of sand and gravel.
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