Garcia eyes “creative district” to create more jobs for the city

MANILA, Philippines —  Cebu City acting Mayor Raymond Alvin Garcia believes that a creative district would generate jobs for young professionals as more international locators are expected to put up capital here.

Garcia told the delegates to the 2024 Digital Careers Expo yesterday that making this dream for a creative district realized would surely create more jobs for the Cebuanos.

He recalled how the IT Park came about during the administration of his father, former mayor Alvin Garcia.

“My father had a dream, he had a vision, and that vision is what we are seeing now, the IT Park,” Garcia said.

According to him, his father then organized an IT Summit involving IT locators from BPO industries as well as the academe and investors. During the summit, the participants came together and discussed how the city can have an IT Park.

The academe then offered courses related to IT and BPO jobs while locators pledged to put up companies here provided that there would be infrastructure for it. The Ayala Land thru Cebu Holdings then said they will provide the infrastructure at the former Lahug airport.

Garcia said the IT Park was a convergence of minds, which at present is a story of success generating 150,000 to 200,000 employees. The acting mayor said he is looking at another IT-related park that would be known as the “Creative District”. The idea was already mentioned by suspended Mayor Michael Rama.

The area eyed for the said project is the north reclamation area considering the presence of large warehouses that can be converted into studios. The creative district, Garcia said, can be home to international companies in industries such as filmmaking, animation, game development, among others just like the IT Park.

“If the IT Park could generate 200,000 employees, how much more a creative district that will harness many more jobs so that young people like you can have jobs that are related to your field,” Garcia said.