QC ranks among top 10 Asian cities, No. 1 in RP

Quezon City has joined the ranks of Hong Kong, Singapore and Taipei as one of the Top 10 Asian Cities of the Future.

Quezon City was ranked No. 7 among more than 200 Asian cities, 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 outranking other Philippine cities except in one category, Quezon City was assessed No. 5 in the category  “Best Economic Potential.” It was third best in Asia in terms of “Cost Effectiveness,” sixth best in terms of “Best Human Resources,” and 10th best in terms of “Quality of Life.”

Analyzing the reasons for Quezon City’s splendid showing, the think tank 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 Feliciano 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 education and training institutions (counting just colleges and universities, the city now has 65), shopping malls in practically every community cluster, and information technology companies that find real estate values in Quezon City very competitive.

IBM and eTelecare, which decided to locate their largest Philippine facilities in Quezon City, cite 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 P3.5 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 for 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 percent of the properties. He envisioned 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.

This attracted the World Bank to commission a framework plan for development. President Arroyo gave the national imprimatur by creating a management team called the Urban Triangle Development (TriDev) Commission, co-chaired by the mayor, to direct the development of this CBD.