| MANILA,
March 30 (PNA) -- Quezon City has joined the ranks of Hong Kong,
Singapore and Taipei, as one of the top 10 Asian Cities of the Future,
it was disclosed on Saturday by Mayor Feliciano Belmonte.
Ranked
No. 7 from among 200 Asian cities, Quezon City"s feat was based on a
survey commissioned by the London Financial Times through AsiaBiz
Strategy, an investment and trade promotion consultancy based in
Singapore. Hong Kong, Singapore and Taipei were the top three.
Consistently
figuring in the top 10, and practically out-ranking other Philippine
cities except in one category, Quezon City was assessed No. 5 in the
“Best Economic Potential” category.
However,
it ranks third best in Asia, in terms of “Cost Effectiveness,” sixth
best, in terms of “Best Human Resources,” and tenth best, in terms of
“Quality of Life.”
Analyzing
the reasons for Quezon City’s splendid showing, the thinktank, Advocacy
for Empowered Local Governments (AELG), cited the City government’s
ability to parlay the most cumbersome challenges into assets for
development.
Studying the city’s growth over the past two decades, AELG noted the rapid rise in investor interest over the past five years.
Among
the reasons consistently cited by business owners is the credibility of
the local government whose governance initiatives have made it a
favorite case study of international institutions like the World Bank,
the Asian Development Bank and the Japan International Cooperation
Agency.
Add
to that, the huge resources being invested by the city government for
infrastructure improvement, which has prompted a taxpayer to remark,
“at least, in Quezon City, we can see where our taxes go.”
Mayor
Belmonte’s forward-looking management style has been able to make the
most of the city’s strategic assets – its large and generally young,
2.4 million population, its central location at the heart of Metro
Manila, as well as its location of choice for media operations, schools
and training centers and medical facilities.
While
other cities and municipalities would view a huge population as a
burden and a drain on public services, Mayor Belmonte views the city’s
young population both as a large, trainable human resource pool as well
as a big consumer market.
While
previous administrations regarded the city’s 16 hectare expanse as a
problem of uncontrolled blight, Belmonte has transformed it into an
investment attraction.
The
results have been policies and programs that have attracted a
continuous inflow of educational and training institutions (counting
just colleges and universities, the city now has 65), shopping malls in
practically every community cluster, and information technology
companies who find real estate values in Quezon City very competitive.
IBM
and eTelecare, which have decided to locate their largest Philippine
facilities at Quezon City, cited the city’s large population, wide
choice of available locations and real estate prices, as their main
reasons for expanding in the city.
Ayala
Land, which has invested P 3.5 billion in the TriNoma Shopping Mall
along North Avenue and the UP North Science and Technology Park,
reportedly capitalized at P1.2 billion, believes that Quezon City is
the strategic door of development to northern Metro Manila.
Trinoma
marks the start of development of the City’s 250-hectare Central
Business District (CBD) set to rise over the North and East Triangles
and Veterans Memorial area of Quezon City.
Belmonte
saw the waste of government assets just across City Hall, where the
national government owns about 95% of the properties.
Now,
Belmonte envisions a modern, mixed-use community to rise in these 250
hectares that would make the most of its broad EDSA frontage and its
multiple transportation access points.
As a result, Belmonte's vision attracted the World Bank into commissioning a framework for development.
As
this develop, President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo has given the national
imprimatur, by creating a management team called the Urban Triangle
Development (TriDev) Commission, co-chaired by the Mayor.
The Tri-Dev Commission is tasked to direct the development of this CBD.(PNA) |