Strong home construction boosts cement sales

Government housing and private housing development in the Philippines has contributed in the 10 to15 percent year-on-year sales increase of cement since 2001. Officials of the Cement Manufacturer’s Association of the Phils. (CeMAP – formerly Philcemcor) attribute this mainly to private housing development, and individual housing projects funded by OFW remittances.

Records from the Housing and Land Use Regulatory Board (HLURB) show that in 2002, there were close to 2,000 private housing development projects all over the country alone, without counting the individual house constructions.

The private sector output for the year 2002 surpassed the 2001 total of 1,744 housing projects by 237; bringing its total to 1,981.

"Cement is steadily gaining ground becoming the preferred construction material in housing construction in rural areas. For many years, wood and other materials have been the preferred choice," says Enrico Alfiler, president of CeMAP.

Engineers and architects in CeMAP explain that most of the housing construction activity in the provinces do not necessarily get finished in a fixed timeframe. Most start construction and are developed as resources allow. Thus cement as the main construction materials has gained ground owing to its relative affordability and durability.

"You cannot build a wood house, and forego its construction for a year," they explained. "The same type of wood may not be available once you are able to gain resources to resume your construction, as with other materials, the same type may not be readily available. With cement, it is constant, durable, affordable, and is also environment friendly." This trend, they noted, is predominant in the countryside, where individual private housing construction is mostly funded by OFW remittance.