WESTERN MINDANAO

WESTERN MINDANAO Located in the southwestern region of the Philippines, it covers the provinces of Basilan, Zamboanga del Norte and Zamboanga del Sur. It includes the major cities such as Zamboanga, Pagadian, Dipolog, and Dapitan. Pagadian City is the regional center. The Sulu Sea lies on the north and west of the region, the Moro Gulf and Mindanao Sea on the south, and on the east are the provinces of Misamis Occidental and Lanao. Due to its proximity to the other nations, Western Mindanao is envisioned to become the gateway and trading hub of the ASEAN communities, specifically the BIMP-EAGA (Brunei- Darussalam- Malaysia-Philippines East Asia Growth Area) and Australia and New Zealand.

POPULATION In 2000, Region IX had a total population of 3,045,000. There was an increase of 8.02% from its population in 1995. In 1995, the male population was 45% of the total population and 58% lived in the rural areas. Zamboanga del Sur has the highest population concentration of 62%. CULTURAL GROUPS Many of the inhabitants come from cultural minorities: the Yakans of Basilan, the Tau-Lauts (commonly known as Badjaos) and the Subanons of the Zamboangas. The rest are migrants from Visayas and Luzon.