CEBU, Philippines — A historic joint session of the Sangguniang Panlalawigan of both Provinces of Cebu and Bohol was hosted by the Cebu Provincial Government at the Capitol Social Hall on Monday, November 18, 2024.
The session, jointly presided by Cebu Vice Governor Hilario Davide III and Bohol Vice Governor Tita Baja, was attended by all Provincial Board Members of the two island provinces.
The two legislative bodies, respectively, approved en masse a resolution authorizing Cebu Governor Gwendolyn Garcia and Bohol Governor Erico Aumentado, on behalf of their provinces, to enter into a sisterhood agreement “to strengthen and foster inter-provinces’ bond of cooperation in relation to tourism, commerce, business and economy, and other shared benefits and growth for Region 7.”
“The sisterhood agreement will promote stronger friendship ties between the provinces. But more importantly, the agreement will institute a working avenue of collaboration and communication facilitating exchanges on various aspects of local governance that is beneficial to both provinces and its people thus leading to its wholistic growth, sustainability, and resiliency,” an excerpt of the resolution reads.
The resolution was jointly authored by Cebu sixth district Provincial Board Member Glenn Anthony Soco, Cebu fifth district Provincial Board Member Mike Villamor, and Bohol second district Provincial Board Member Jiselle Rae Aumentado Villamor. The initiative follows the enactment of Republic Act No. 12000, which established the Negros Island Region (NIR).
With the new law, it separated Negros Oriental and Siquijor from Central Visayas and merged them with Negros Occidental. With the creation of the Negros Island Region, Central Visayas now consists of Cebu Province, Bohol, and the highly urbanized cities of Cebu, Lapu-Lapu, and Mandaue.
Evelyn Castro, assistant regional director of the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) in Central Visayas, who appeared as a resource speaker during the joint session, said that before NIR, the Gross Regional Domestic Product (GRDP) of Central Visayas was at 1.287 trillion at a growth rate of 7.6%.
But with the new composition of Central Visayas, Castro said the region is only left with 1.108 trillion GRDP or 86% of the former Central Visayas.
“So, the old or the original configuration of Central Visayas, 86% of it is still based on the new Central Visayas comprising the Bohol, Cebu, and the three highly urbanized cities,” said Castro.
Based on the 2022 figures, the economies of both provinces would account to 80% to 86% of the total GDRP of the old configuration.
“The growth path and the trajectory upon which Central Visayas is heading even with the new configuration of Central Visayas is very encouraging,” said Castro.
The Bohol and Cebu provinces were supported by other regional offices including NEDA, Philippine Statistics Authority, Department of Trade and Industry in mapping out their direction.
Garcia told reporters after the joint session that one of the agreements made was to share programs with Bohol that are specifically focused on helping those who are most in need. These include Cebu programs like the Caravan of Services, SugBusog, SugboNegosyo, and SugboKahanas, which, she noted, have been very helpful to the people of Cebu.
In her speech before the joint session, Garcia coined the term 'SugBohol,' a portmanteau of Cebu’s Visayan name 'Sugbo' and Bohol. The governors, Garcia and Aumentado, also mentioned that they will unveil the logo for this new name, which will replace 'Central Visayas' during the sisterhood agreement ceremony.
“We can share our stories with one goal in mind, to send that signal to the entire country: Watch out! Watch out! What is left of Region 7, you have just given us the opportunity to become the economic powerhouse of the Visayas, and who knows, perhaps even the entire country,” Garcia stressed.
Aumentado, in his speech, said the gathering of Cebu and Bohol legislators was a valuable opportunity to strengthen unity as a single region.
“With our shared history and heritage, I believe that Bohol and Cebu have what it takes to reach greater heights and become powerhouses of economic growth, social inclusion, and technological innovation in the entire country,” said the Bohol Governor.
As part of their agreement, the formal signing of the sisterhood pact will take place in Bohol, although the date is yet to be set. The interprovincial partnership will primarily focus on trade and commerce, business and economic development, investment promotion, tourism, cultural and social exchanges, as well as sharing best practices in governance. — (FREEMAN)