A Passage to the Philippines

The islands are subject to typhoons, whose torrential rains can cause devastating floods; 5,000 people died on Leyte in 1991 from such flooding, and several storms in 2004 and 2006 caused deadly flooding and great devastation.
Administratively, the republic is divided into 72 provinces and 61 chartered cities. In addition to Manila, other important centers are Quezon City, also on Luzon; Cebu, on Cebu Island; Iloilo, on Panay; Davao and Zamboanga, on Mindanao; and Jolo, on Jolo Island in the Sulu Archipelago.

Economy

With their tropical climate, heavy rainfall, and naturally fertile volcanic soil, the Philippines are predominantly agricultural. Rice, corn, and coconuts take up about 80% of all cropland. Sugarcane, sweet potatoes, manioc, bananas, hemp, tobacco, and coffee are also important crops. Carabao (water buffalo), pigs, chickens, goats, and ducks are widely raised, and there is dairy farming. Fishing is a common occupation; the Sulu Archipelago is noted for its pearls and mother-of-pearl shell.

The islands have one of the world's greatest stands of commercial timber. There are also mineral resources such as nickel, zinc, copper, cobalt, gold, silver, iron ore, and chromite. Nonmetallic minerals include rock asphalt, gypsum, asbestos, sulfur, and coal. Limestone, adobe, and marble are quarried, and petroleum is mined.

Manufacturing is concentrated in metropolitan Manila, near the nation's prime port, but there has been considerable industrial growth on Cebu, Negros, and Mindanao in recent years. Textiles, pharmaceuticals, and chemicals are manufactured, and the assembly of electronics and automobiles is important. Other industries include food processing and petroleum refining. The former U.S. military base at Subic Bay was redeveloped in the 1990s as a free-trade zone.

The economy has nonetheless remained week, and many Filipinos, who are generally well educated, have sought employment overseas; remittances from an estimated 8 million Filipinos abroad are important to the economy. Chief exports are electronics and telecommunications equipment, lumber and plywood, machinery, garments, coconut products, copper, and sugar. The main imports are raw materials, production equipment, and intermediate goods for processing. The chief trading partners are the United States and Japan.

Government

The Philippines is governed under the constitution of 1987. The president, who is both chief of state and head of the government, is elected by popular vote for a six-year term. The bicameral legislature consists of a 24-seat senate and a 204-seat house of representatives, both of whose members are popularly elected. There is an independent judiciary headed by a supreme court.