WITH the apparent “boom” in property development in Bacolod and neighboring cities by leading real estate developers in the country, coupled by the low-cost housing settlements, mushrooming of supermalls and convenience stores, call centers, food chains, some people say that the province is going through a robust economic growth.
I am skeptical about it. Let’s go to the essentials, not mere manifestations.
These infrastructures are consumer-driven, and not production-oriented. As such they don’t create sustainable employment, good pay and better social services.
Other segments of our urban-based local economy remain largely retailing service which also don’t create jobs and like the malls and stores run by big traders and wholesalers even help manipulate the local economy, force consumers to succumb to ever-fluctuating prices of basic commodities.
At their best or worst, they only siphon remittances of OFWs and the already bad incomes of the local labor force.
The “boom” in property development is not a good indicator of a growing economy. It does not give an omnibus picture of the state of our economy.
Property development “boom” is a manipulative tool for big developers to create opportunities for themselves to rake in big profits without contributing much to local economic development.
Through speculations about emerging growth areas, they attract and lure investments to properties where they dictate prices and costs of construction and development. They project growth centers for the city and trap investors. But in the end, there will be nothing substantive investment and profit in there.
There are so many old and new commercial buildings in Bacolod which are empty of lessees and buyers. Even the mall districts around Bacolod are losing occupants and consumers.
You ask why? The short and the long-term capacity of the bigger segments of the local population to propel the growth of these infrastructures is low and weak because there is little employment, people don’t have good and sustainable incomes, soaring inflation is practically killing everyone.
This picture is indicative instead of a local economy, I call it sugarlandia, not having strong foundations that generate jobs, social security, and food security.
Most job creation is in construction and call centers; true but it is short-term. The other is government employment which is not a sign either of a stronger economy because official facts tells us that many of those in government service are beneficiaries of patronage politics not qualified professionals.
Strong economic foundations are the more reliable and better indicator of a growing local economy. And this is achieved by strong agriculture and manufacturing sectors.
In the case of Negros, the monocrop sugar-based economy continues to weaken due to internal and external, domestic and international factors. Other segments of the agriculture are likewise weak and output low, e.g. rice, corn, vegetables, livestock. In fact, more than 50 percent of local food supply is imported, evidence of a backward and weak agriculture.
And to think that the biggest concentration of our poor and marginalized sectors is in agriculture is quite chilling to even think about.
The manufacturing sector, e.g. light and medium industries, is insignificant in our local economy. Maybe the mining sector is better off, but with worsening climate change and growing environmental disasters, exacerbated by corrupt and greedy local and national government officials, prospects of mining share in regional gross value added is getting nil.
The agricultural and industrial sectors are essential for our local economic development because they are the ones that truly create value, create jobs, raise incomes, improve social services and people’s security, ensure environment and social balance, and no less, economic surplus vital to sustain the development of industries, modernization of agriculture and financing physical and social infrastructures.
Check this in all towns and cities over the island, both the private sectors and the local government units, and nothing much has changed since the past 30, 40 years. Private sectors are into consumer-driven services. The government is still into giving token social services, a collection of taxes, repair of roads, and giving donations, and complaining of their small IRA, internal revenue allotment.
So if the basic foundation of sugarlandia economy is weak, how can it sustain the so-called infrastructure “boom”?
Ah, it’s another experience in bubble growth.
Unless, the government recognizes the important socio-economic concerns, and do something to reverse them, strike at the main drivers of sustainable growth that benefit the widest sectors of our society - Negros condition will be stuck in backwardness and impoverishment, and just go through the ever meaningless boom-bust cycle of a moribund economy.
Other service institutions will either go with the flow and still earning from it, or transform themselves into a genuine catalyst for change and development, and still rake good revenues.
(For feedback, email ombion.ph@outlook.com)