TAGUM CITY, Davao del Norte — The 2024 Construction Statistics of Davao del Norte played a significant role in understanding the province’s overall economic performance, particularly its contribution to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), according to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) Davao del Norte provincial statistical office.
Guesting in the recent episode of Kapihan sa DavNor, PSA Davao del Norte officer-in-charge Michelle O. Maningo emphasized the importance of understanding the value of construction statistics, noting that the industry made a considerable contribution to the province's overall economy in 2024.
Based on the recently released Provincial Product Account of PSA Davao del Norte, construction was noted as the fastest-growing industry in 2024, with a 16.3 percent growth rate.
Among the 16 production industries in 2024, construction ranked as the top major contributor to the 5.4 percent overall growth of Davao del Norte’s economy.
Looking into the details of the contribution of the construction industry to the overall economy of the province, Maningo said that the data from approved building permits revealed that 3,700 construction activities were recorded in 2024.
This 2024 figure of approved building permits was a slight 0.9% decrease from 3,733 constructions in 2023, but despite this minimal decline in activity, the total value of constructions rose to P5.58 billion in 2024, marking a 1.8% increase from P5.48 billion in 2023.
Maningo cited this as “an indicator of sustained investments and expanding economic activity in the province,” as she noted a number of visibly rising commercial buildings and warehouses in Davao del Norte.
“The growth in the total value of constructions in 2024 signals continued investor confidence,” she said.
By construction type, non-residential buildings accounted for the largest share in total construction value at P2.65 billion or 47.6%, reflecting business and institutional expansions, which Maningo cited as generators of local employment and related businesses.
Meanwhile, residential buildings remained dominant in terms of the number of projects, with 2,554 constructions or 69% of the total.
In the same forum, PSA-Davao del Norte Statistical Specialist II and Focal Person on Establishment and Administrative-Based Statistics, Geoffrey Pamaylaon said residential buildings had consistently contributed the highest number of construction for the past five years in the province.
The total floor area of constructions in 2024 in Davao del Norte stood at 675.85 thousand square meters, or 6.8% higher than the 632.84 thousand square-meter total floor area posted in 2023.
As shown in the PSA Davao del Norte PSO presentation, non-residential buildings posted the highest total floor area of construction in 2024 at 442.07 thousand square meters or more than half of the overall total, and that the same observation can also be noted in the past five years, Pamaylaon said.
Maningo said that understanding construction statistics “is essential for economic planning and policy formulation, as the data serve as indicators of investment flows, infrastructure growth, and sectoral productivity.”
“Construction data tell the story of local investment confidence and development direction,” Maningo said in line with efforts of PSA Davao del Norte to put into layman’s terms the statistical data and figures. PIA DAVAO