The (abbreviated C.D.O. or Cag. de Oro ; of
Misamis Oriental and the regional center for
Northern Mindanao (Region X). According to the 2000 census, it has an estimated population of 461,877 people in 200,000 households. It is known as the "City of Golden Friendship".
Cagayan de Oro City is located in the province of
Misamis Oriental ,
Northern Mindanao . It's geographic location is . To the south, the city is bordered by
Bukidnon Province. The
Municipality of
Opol, Misamis Oriental borders the city in the west and
Tagoloan, Misamis Oriental to the east. On the north lies
Macajalar Bay in the
Bohol Sea .
The city has 7 rivers and several creeks. Cagayan de Oro River is the main tributary in the city.
Soil in Cagayan de Oro are predominantly clay. Other textures ranges from sand, loam to clay loamhttp://www.cagayandeoro.gov.ph/.
Cagayan de Oro City is politically subdivided into 2 districts and 80
Barangay s.
As a tropical country, the Philippines has only two seasons: Wet and Dry. Temperature in Cagayan de Oro averages around 28 degrees Celsius. The warmest recorded temperature in the city is at 36 degrees Celsius. Relative humidity is 81%.
Rains are evenly distributed thorough out the year. The month of April is the driest, while July is the wettest. Cagayan de Oro is outside the
Pacific Typhoon belt, but it is affected by the
Inter-Tropical Convergence Zone http://www.pagasa.dost.gov.ph/.
Since June 15, 1950, the City of Cagayan de Oro has been administered by elected and appointed officials.
The city government is composed of the Mayor, Vice-Mayor, 16 City Councilors and one
Sangguniang Kabataan Federation Representative. In 2007, Cagayan de Oro was divided into two districts with Cagayan de Oro River as its natural boundary. Each district elects eight City Councilors and one Congressional Representative.
The current Mayor of Cagayan de Oro City is Constantino G. Jaraula with his Vice-Mayor
Vicente Y. Emano .
Around 377 AD, natives of Cagayan where already living around the vicinity of the Huluga Cave, 8 kilometers from the present day Cagayan de Oro. The settlement was known as Himologan.http://heritage.elizaga.net/history/
In 1622, two Spanish Augustinian Recollect missionaries came in contact with the natives of Himologan. The missionaries observed that the natives were polytheistic animist and paid tributes to
Sultan Muhammad Dipatuan Kudarat , the
Sultan Of Maguindanao .
In 1626, Fray Agustin de San Pedro persuaded the chief of Himologan,
Datu Salangsang, to transfer his settlement down river, the present day Gaston Park. Fray Agustin later fortified the new settlement against Sultan Kudarat, who sent warriors to regain back his lost tributes.
On February 27, 1872, the Spanish Governor General Carlos Maria de la Torre issued a decree declaring Cagayan the permanent capital of Segundo Distrito de Misamis. During this era, the name of the town was known as Cagayan de Misamis.
On January 10, 1899, Cagayan de Misamis celebrated its independence from Spain and joined the Filipino government of
Emilio Aguinaldo . It was the second time the Aguinaldo government was declared and the new Philippine flag raised in
Mindanao island.
By virtue of the
1898 Treaty Of Paris , Spain ceded the Philippines to the United States. This caused friction and resulted to the
Philippine-American War . In March 31, 1900, the Americans invaded Cagayan de Misamis and took over the town. On April 7, 1900, fighting erupted in the town center led by General Nicolas Capistranohttp://www.msc.edu.ph/centennial/hero/ncr/page3.html and Filipino resistance fighters.
Eventually the Americans won the war. Cagayan de Misamis was slowly transformed as the economic center of Northern Mindanao with the establishment of the Philippine Packing Corporationhttp://www.delmontepacific.com/about/history_corporate.htm, presently known as
Del Monte Philippines Inc.
World War II erupted and on May 1 1942, Japanese forces invaded Cagayan de Misamis, destroying most of town. Cagayan was finally liberated on May 10, 1945 but suffered heavy aerial bombardment from the Americans.
Through the efforts of Congressman
Emmanuel Pelaez , the town of Cagayan de Misamis became a city on
June 15 ,
1950 and its name changed to Cagayan de Oro. Congressman Pelaez appended "de Oro" to "Cagayan" in recognition of the gold mining activities in the area known to Spanish explorers.
Cebuano or Visayan is the city's main language. Most residents of Cagayan de Oro can also converse in Tagalog and English.
Natives of Cagayan de Oro are called Kagayanons. They are of Malay, Spanish, American, and Chinese descent. Centuries of migration have made Cagayan a melting pot of people from different regions and faith.
Most Kagayanons are Roman Catholics. The rest are from other Christian faiths (Aglipay, Baptists and others), Muslims, Buddhists and Animists. The Saint Augustine Metropolitan Cathedral is the seat of the Archdiocese of Cagayan de Oro.
Every 28th of August, Cagayan de Oro celebrates the feast of Saint Augustine. In 2007, the city unveiled the new name of its annual city fiesta, the Kagay-an Festival. It is highlighted by the Miss Kagay-an Tourism beauty pagent, Sakay-Sakay sa Lambago fluvial parade, street dancing in native costumes and the Golden Float parade.
It is base to both local and multi-national companies such as Del Monte Philippines, Nestle, Coca-Cola, Pepsi Cola, and others. The city's economy is largely based on industry, trade, service and tourism. Link2Support and Arriba are among the few call centers that has recently opened their doors to the city.http://www.cagayandeoro.gov.ph/
Cagayan de Oro is a young city compared to other highly urbanized cities in the Philippines. Cagayan de Oro's annual income has reached a record of 1.345 Billion Pesos as of the fiscal year 2006.
With the ongoing construction of the Laguindingan International Airport, business analysts predict the entry of more foreign and local investments and an increase in tourism activity in the region will make Cagayan de Oro as one of the chief cities in the south.
Cagayan de Oro is considered as the gateway to
Northern Mindanao because of its good transport infrastructure.
The
Lumbia Airport caters domestic flights to and from Manila and Cebu. From
Manila , it is an hour and fifteen minutes away by plane and from
Cebu it is an hour and ten minutes. The construction of the
Laguindingan International Airport is ongoing. When finished it will serve the Northern Mindanao region including the major cities of Iligan and Cagayan de Oro.
The Macabalan seaport serves regular trips to Manila, Cebu,
Tagbilaran ,
Bacolod ,
Dumaguete ,
Iloilo , and
Jagna . It is the busiest in the region.
Cagayan de Oro Seaport is a modern international seaport outside Metro Manila. Situated near the estuary of Cagayan de Oro River, it has an anchorage depth of 18 meters and is around 400 meters from shoreline. Cagayan de Oro Seaport has two authorized cargo handling operators.http://cagayan.elizaga.net/infra.html With the recent completion of the 250 Million Peso rehabilitation, the Cagayan de Oro seaport is now the largest international and domestic seaport in Mindanao.http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/regions/view_article.php?article_id=78497
General Milling and Del Monte Philippines also operates their own port facilities within Cagayan de Oro. The US$85 Million Mindanao Container Terminal located in Tagoloan, 17 kilometers from Cagayan de Oro serves the PHIVIDEC Industrial Estate.
There are 3 bus and jeepney terminals in the city which offers regular land trips. The Agora Bus Terminal caters trips to and from
Balingoan (port going to
Camiguin ),
Gingoog ,
Davao ,
Butuan and
Surigao in the
CARAGA Region ,
Valencia and
Malaybalay in
Bukidnon . While the Bulua-Westbound Bus Terminal caters trips to and from
Iligan ,
Ozamiz , and western parts of
Mindanao .
4 major land based telecom companies serve the city. These are Philcom, Misortel, Cruztelco and Italtel. Unfortunately they have interconnection problems. Globe-Touch Mobile, Smart-TalknText, Sun and Extelcom provide mobile services through out the city.
There are several internet companies operating in the city offering dial up, broadband, Wi Fi and cable services. The Pueblo de Oro IT Park located in Upper Carmen is the first PEZA-registered IT park in Mindanao. The IT Park currently houses one of Cagayan de Oro's call centers.
Water services is provided by the Cagayan de Oro Water District (COWD) It was the first water district established in the entire countryhttp://www.lwua.gov.ph/wd_features/wd_cagdeoro.htm.
Electricity is provided by the Cagayan Electric Power and Light Company (CEPALCO). It covers 64 barangays and caters to more than 80,000 consumers. They are also operating a 1 megawatt photovoltaic-solar power plant in Indahag. It is biggest solar power plant connected to the power grid in South East Asia.http://www.irradiance.com/philippine.html
The city has a hospital bed to population ratio of 1:474 as of 2003. There are 12 major well-equipped private and government-run hospitals including 50 Barangay Health Centers and 20 Family Planning Centers. There also modern diagnostic centers and laboratories operating in the city.
http://www.cagayandeoro.gov.ph/
(Provincial Hospital) and '''JR Borja Memorial Medical Hospital''' (City Hospital) are the two main government run hospitals in the city.
The new Capitol University Medical City Hospital is one of the developments of the health services in city.
In the recent years, private hospitals in the city have embarked on an aggressive expansion program. There has been a strong demand for medical facilities not only within the city but from nearby Mindanao provinces.
As the center of education in Northern Mindanao, Cagayan de Oro boasts of 300 private and public schools catering to primary, secondary, vocational and college education. There are 5 universities and colleges operating in the city.
The
Mindanao Polytechnic State College is the only state run college in the city.
Capitol University ,
Liceo de Cagayan University , and
Xavier University-Ateneo de Cagayan are the 3 major universities in the city specializing in various disciplines such as medicine, nursing, commerce, engineering, law, masteral and doctorate degrees. While
AMA Computer University and
Philippine Women's University are campus branches offering limited courses.
Local and foreign tourist arrivals in the city is on the rise. In 2004, the city registered a tourist arrival of 307,820 from a previous of 232,257 in 2003http://www.cagayandeoro.gov.ph/. This notable increase of tourist arrivals was due to the national governments aggressive tourism campaign.
- is an underground cave with a 130 foot (40 m) circular gorge. The ravine is thick with various species of plants and huge trees. It is the site of the historic battle between local and American soldiers during the Philippine-American War (1900).
- along the Cagayan de Oro river has gained popularity through the years after President Macapagal-Arroyo herself went whitewater rafting last 2002http://www.gov.ph/news/default.asp?i=1333.
- is the home of the Archdiocese of Cagayan de Oro. Rebuilt in the 1950s, this place of worship is also famous for its century old stained glass.
- is located across the San Agustin Metropolitan Cathedral area. Famous for its water fountain, the park remains to be a favorite place to unwind for many people, especially during sundays.
- is concealed by huge boulders, the rapids, cascading falls and natural pool of Brgy. F.S. Catanico.
- is a museum of Philippine household heirlooms and antiques. This is the Rodolfo and Elsa Pelaez family memorabilia administered by the Liceo de Cagayan University.
- is ideal for horseback riding, biking, zipline and nature trekking.
- is located in a reforested area in Malasag Hill. This 7 hectare village has replicas of tribal houses in the region and a panoramic view of Macajalar Bay. The tourism village is owned and managed by the Philippine Tourism Authorityhttp://www.philtourism.gov.ph/ecom_desc.html.
- used to be the Lawndale Spring Resort in the Taguanao Area. The resort has recently been opened to the public again, and the place is usually packed with families and groups on weekends to refresh themselves with the cold and refreshing spring water.
- is situated in front of the Provincial Capitol of Misamis Oriental with age-old mahogany trees that provide a therapeutic canopy for the promenades. The park, used to be known as McArthur Park, is a popular jogging area during the morning.
- was built in 1901 as a town divider (divisoria) or fire breaker after a great fire that almost burned down the entire town. It is now a park dedicated to local and national heroes like President Ramon Magsaysay, Andres Bonifacio, Dr. Jose Rizal, and former Cagayan de Oro Mayor Borja.
- is among several parks located within Plaza Divisoria. Most of those local soldiers who died during the Philippine-American War of 1900 are buried beneath the monument.
- is a museum located within the campus of Xavier University. It exhibits artifacts dug from Huluga Cave and repertoire of Bukidnon and Maranao Cultures that have survived the ravages of time.
- are two caves where two skeletal fragments of a child and a woman who inhabited Cagayan in 377 A.D. were found. It is unfortunate however, that the complex where the caves are located had been destroyed by the construction of a largely underutilized and controversial bridge--the Pelaez bridge, named after former vice-president of the Philippines Emmanuel Pelaez who, ironically, was a cultural and environmental conservationist.
- The at the Divisoria area is set up on Friday and Saturday nights. Locals and visitors gather in the streets of Divisoria to have barbecue and seafood, among many choices, and enjoy the music, beer, and also the great bargains from the nearby '''Night Market'''.
- ]
- The in upper Cagayan de Oro is an expansive business and residential area. This is where SM City Cagayan de Oro, Hotel Koresco, the 18-hole Pueblo Golf Course designed by Robert Trent Jones II, and a host of middle to high-end residential areas are located.
located in Barangay Patag is the largest military camp in Mindanao. It is home to the 4th Infantry Division of the Philippine Army. Camp Evangelista's external jurisdiction covers the Northern Mindanao and CARAGA region. Minor military camps are also located in Barangay Lumbia and upper Puerto.
is the headquarters of the Philippine National Police (PNP). It is located in Barangay Lapasan on top of a hilly area overlooking the city. Camp Alagar has jurisdiction over the entire Northern Mindanao.http://www.pnp.gov.ph/index.html
Recently the the national government provided new vehicles and equipments to improve Police response time and increase Police visibility in the city streets.
Cagayan de Oro City is fast becoming the shopping capital of the region. Residents from nearby provinces visit the city to shop and enjoy the mall facilities. Ayala Land recently launched its residential estate in Indahag and would soon construct its own shopping center, the Ayala Mall. SM City and Robinsons Mall are drawing plans to further expand their operations in the city center. Plans are also underway for the construction of the Pacific Island City Mall along Barangay Nazareth.
The following are the major shopping centers in the city:
- is located in Brgy Lapasan, near the National Highway. The Atrium located inside the mall is ideal for conventions, concerts, exhibits, and other events. This venue can accommodate a large group. Events held in the Atrium include concerts by local and foreign artists, beauty pageants including the annual Miss Cagayan de Oro, and local and national conventions.
- is located behind the Limketkai Mall. It is right beside Grand Caprice Restaurant and Convention Center.
- is at the Claro M. Recto Avenue cor Corrales Extension, Lapasan Highway. Gaisano also has branches in Cogon and Carmen.
- at Masterson Avenue cor Gran Via at the Pueblo de Oro Township .
- at Kauswagan Highway.
- in Lapasan, Cogon, and Carmen.
- is where many smaller shopping centers are located and where items are sold at bargain prices.
