Davao del Norte (
Cebuano: Amihanang Dabaw;
Filipino: Hilagang Davao), officially the Province of Davao del Norte (
Cebuano: Lalawigan sa Amihanang Dabaw, Lalawigan sa Davao del Norte;
Filipino: Lalawigan ng Hilagang Davao, Lalawigan ng Davao del Norte), is a
province in the
Philippines located in the
Davao Region in
Mindanao. Its capital and largest city is
Tagum. The province also includes
Samal Island to the south in
Davao Gulf.
Davao del Norte and
Davao de Oro (Compostela Valley) by R.A. 8470, January 30, 1998, together with
Davao Oriental, and
Davao Occidental from
Davao del Sur by R.A. 10360, July 23, 2013, used to be a whole province simply known as
Davao Region. This original province was split into three: Davao del Norte,
Davao Oriental, and
Davao del Sur when Republic Act No. 4867 (authored by Representative Lorenzo S. Sarmiento, Sr.) was signed into law on May 8, 1967, by President
Ferdinand Marcos.[5]
The passage of Republic Act No. 6430 on June 17, 1972, changed the name of the province from Davao del Norte to Davao.[6]
By 1996, Davao had a total of twenty-two municipalities with the creation of San Vicente (now
Laak) in 1979,[7]Maragusan in 1988,[8][9] and
Talaingod in 1991.[10]
On January 31, 1998, President
Fidel V. Ramos signed Republic Act No. 8470, which split the province into two, creating the province of
Davao de Oro (Compostela Valley).[11] In the meantime, Davao was renamed back to Davao del Norte. Together with the creation of the new province, two
cities and one
municipality were created: the municipality of Tagum, capital of Davao del Norte, was converted into a city (R.A. 8472);[12] Samal, Babak, and Kaputian were joined into the city of
Samal (R.A. 8471);[13] and the municipality of
Braulio E. Dujali was created out of several
barangays in Panabo and Carmen (R.A. 8473).[14] The province then had 8 municipalities and 2 cities.
Republic Act No. 9015, signed into law on March 5, 2001, by President
Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, converted the municipality of Panabo into a city.[15]Republic Act No. 9265, approved on March 15, 2004, created the municipality of
San Isidro from Asuncion and Kapalong.[16]
Geography
Davao del Norte covers a total area of 3,426.97 square kilometres (1,323.16 sq mi)[17] occupying the north-central section of the
Davao Region. The province borders
Agusan del Sur to the north,
Bukidnon to the west,
Davao de Oro to the east, and
Davao City to the south.
Samal is the only municipality or city in the province not situated on Mindanao island. The city covers the entire Samal and Talikud Islands within
Davao Gulf.
Davao del Norte had a population of 1,125,057 in the 2020 census.[4] The population density was 297/km2 (768/sq mi). The main languages spoken are
Cebuano and
Davawenyo while
English and
Filipino are also widely spoken.
Indigenous groups
Talaingod is the home of many Indigenous groups in Davao del Norte, with most of them
Lumads and
Aetas.
The principal crops of the province include
rice,
maize,
banana,
coconut,
abacá,
ramie,
coffee, and a variety of
fruit and
root crops. Davao del Norte is the country's leading producer of bananas, with many plantations run by multinationals
Dole and
Del Monte, and local producers such as Lapanday, TADECO, and Marsman. Davao del Norte is also one of Mindanao's leading producer of rice.
Davao Gulf, to the south of the province, provides a living for many fisherfolk. Some of the fish products include brackish water
milkfish, tilapia,
shrimp, and
crab; and freshwater
catfish and tilapia.
Davao del Norte is a major producer of
gold, and its mining resources include
silica,
silver,
copper, and elemental
sulfur. Small-scale gold mining activities thrive in several areas. There are also numerous active quarries of commercial quantities of gravel, sand, and pebbles for construction.
Tourism is also a major part of the economy of Davao del Norte. There are a lot of beaches on Samal Island, the most famous of which is Pearl Farm Beach Resort. Banana Beach Resort is the most famous beach outside of Samal Island.
Commerce is also a major part of the economy of Davao del Norte. There are lot of shopping malls in Tagum.
Notes
^The national government has imposed a 60-day preventive suspension dated on April 8 on Jubahib due to strong evidence of "grave abuse of authority and oppression charges". Jubahib has defied the order and refused to vacate the provincial capitol.[1]
^
abUy as vice governor serves as an acting governor while Jubahib serves his 60-day preventative suspension effective April 11, 2024.[2]
^"List of Provinces". PSGC Interactive. Makati, Philippines: National Statistical Coordination Board. Archived from
the original on January 17, 2013. Retrieved April 24, 2014.