MACRO SITE ANALYSIS – ALBAY PROVINCE

PHYSICAL PROFILE

Capital: Legazpi City

Land Area: 2,552.06 km²
Population: 1,233,432
Cities: Legazpi City, Ligao City, Tabaco City
Number of Towns: 15

Albay has a total land area of 2,552.6 square kilometers, which makes it the 26th
smallest province. Most of Albay is located on mainland Bicol Peninsula and it has four
major islands to the east: Rapu-Rapu, Batan, Cagraray, and San Miguel.

Lagonoy Gulf borders the province to the northeast, separating it from the province of
Catanduanes. Burias Island in the province Masbate can be found to the southwest
across Burias Pass.

The province is generally mountainous with scattered fertile plains and valleys. Mayon
Volcano, standing at around 2460 meters, is the most famous landform in Albay, and in
the whole of Bicol, in fact. This active volcano is nearly perfectly-shaped and is
considered by many to be more beautiful than Mt. Fuji in Japan. Other mountains and
volcanoes in the province are Catburawan, Masaraga, Malinao, and Pantao.
CLIMATE

Albay's climate is classified as tropical. The rainfall in Albay is significant, with

precipitation even during the driest month. The average annual temperature is 23.6 °C.
Precipitation averages 2543 mm.

The least amount of rainfall occurs in September. The average in this month is 157 mm.
In January, the precipitation reaches its peak, with an average of 344 mm.

The temperatures are highest on average in April, at around 24.1 °C. At 23.0 °C on
average, January is the coldest month of the year.

The variation in the precipitation between the driest and wettest months is 187 mm. The
variation in annual temperature is around 1.1 °C.

CULTURE

Bicolano is the primary language spoken in Albay, being a part of the Bicol Region.
Majority of the inhabitants also understand Tagalog and English.

Down in the Bicol region, Albay remains on a festive spirit as it showcases its
cuisine, culture and craft in three different festivals this June. The month-long merry-
making begins as quaint town of Camalig puts forward its mouth-watering cuisine in
the Pinangat Festival from June 10-25.
DEMOGRAPHICS

The population of Albay in the 2015 census was 1,314,826 people, making it the 20th
most populous province in the country. It had a density of 510 inhabitants per square
kilometer or 1,300 inhabitants per square mile. Based on the 2007 census, there were
208,640 households in the province with an average size of 5.22 persons, significantly
higher than the national average of 4.99.

TRANSPORTATION AND COMMUNICATION

Legazpi City has a Base Port which is

designated as a principal port because
of the volume of trade, and the
available direct land transport services.
The Legazpi City Base Port has a 339
meter long x 30 meter wide wharf, and
a RORO facility which is 105 meters
long x 15 meters wide RC pier with a
10-meter long x 5-meter wide ramp.

Figure 1 THE SITE This Base Port serves primarily as a collection

point for products of other provinces and islands east and south of Legazpi City. Port
services include an open storage area of 1,738 m². Cargo handling is provided by a
private arrastre and stevedoring company.
Figure 2 ROAD MAP

Shipping agents are available in the port and there are 17 third-class tramping
vessels TA No. 7122-PHI: Water District Development Sector Project PPTA – FR Vol. 5
– SPAR: LCWD 23 transporting goods and passengers to and from Legazpi City and
various points in the Provinces of Albay and Sorsogon. There are also 2 private ports in
the City. The Legazpi City Airport is the only trunk line airport in the Bicol Region. It has
a concrete runway of 1,974 meters and can accommodate medium-sized planes like the
Boeing 737. However, the airport operates only at daytime. It handles 6 flights daily by 2
airline companies, namely: the Philippine Airlines (PAL) and Cebu Pacific.

Telephone services are handled by Bayantel and Digitel. Both use the SPC-
digital system and have a combined capacity of 19,554 connections. In 2006, there
were 8,673 fixed connections. Both companies also provide services for telegraph and
telex, serve as international gateway facility (IGF) operators, and extend services for
international long distance calls. Sun Cellular/Digitel Mobile, Globe Telecom, and Smart
Communications, Inc. provide cellular phone services through 7 cell sites located all
over the City. In 2006, the City had 19 NTC-accredited mobile phone service centers
and 16 NTC-accredited mobile phone dealers or retailers. There were 4 internet service
providers with DSL services in the City; these are Digitel, Bayantel, SMART, and PLDT.
Internet cafes grew from 17 in 2001 to 80 in 2006. The Legazpi City Post Office still
provides mail service, although it is losing out to competition from private service
providers. However, it was still able to post 245,195 letters and deliver 573,642 letters in
2005—a huge task for 22 letter carriers. There were also 15 AM and FM stations, 3
television stations, and 2 cable televisions in the City in 2006.

POWER SUPPLY

As of 2006, the entire City was almost covered by electric power. Of the 33,042
potential household customers of the Albay Electric Cooperative, Incorporated II
(ALECO II), 31,348 or 95% were already enjoying the benefits of electric power. The
urban barangays were already completely served and only far-flung sitios or puroks
were not served. However, electric service left much to be desired as frequent power
outages were experienced affecting the normal operation of residents, establishments,
and institutions. Also, the high power selling rate of the National Power Corporation
(NAPOCOR) to ALECO was an issue which forced consumers to pay high power rates.
Looting of power lines, tower parts, and other materials; high systems losses due to
pilferage; and low voltage supply affected the ability of ALECO to provide efficient
service at reasonable prices.

WATER SUPPLY

In 2008, 27,067 households out of total of 37,184 households or 72.8% had

access to Level III water sources, most of which is provided by the Legazpi City Water
District. Another 2,425 households or 6.5% had access to Level II water sources and
the remaining 7,692 households or 20.7% had to access Level I water sources. As of
2008, the Water District had 16,890 active connections. Of these, 15,505 were
residential customers, 1,129 were commercial customers, 255 were institutional
customers, and only 1 was industrial. In 2006, only 28 percent of the 25 rural barangays
were served and given the number of active connections registered by the Water
District both in 2006 and 2008, it is likely that modest improvements in this area have
been made. Only 607 active residential connections were added from 2006 to 2008.