The City of Zamboanga (Zamboangueo Chavacano/Spanish: Ciudad de Zamboanga): is a highly urbanized, independent and a chartered city located in Mindanao,

Philippines. It is currently ranked as the 6th most populous city (947,020 estimated population as of 2010) and the 3rd largest by land area in the Philippines (1,483.3849/km2 (572.738/sq mi)).[5][6] It is located at the southernmost tip of the Zamboanga Peninsula and is bounded in the north by the provinces of Zamboanga Sibugay and Zamboanga del Norte, in the west by the Sulu Sea, in the east by Sibuguey Bay, and in the south by theBasilan Strait. It is approximately 460 nautical miles (850 km) south of City of Manila, 365 nautical miles (676 km) northeast of Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia, 345 nautical miles (639 km) northeast of Manado, Indonesia, bounded to the west by Sulu Sea, on the east by the Moro Gulf, and on the south by the Basilan Strait and Celebes Sea. Its distance from Cebu City is about 372.57 nautical miles (690.00 km), and is 340.17 nautical miles (629.99 km) from Davao City.[7] The Ciudad de Zamboangas climates are generally of the third and fourth types where it is practically from June to December. The highest rainfall occurs on the month of July while the lowest rainfalls on the month of April. The city is outside the typhoon belt, hence, typhoons rarely visit the Ciudad de Zamboanga. It is now the centre of economic activities in Mindanao with its modern international seaport, which is one of the principal ports of call for inter-island and international shipping. Its airport, which also classified as an international airport, provides air transportation to various domestic destinations. Both seaport and airport serve as transshipment points of various goods to neighboring cities and countries. It is the seat of one of the largest number of military and police bases in the country. It is also home of the 3rd Air Division of the Edwin Andrews Air Base, which handles the Air Force of the Philippines in the city; and the 6th Naval District in Camp General Basilio Navarro also known as Western Mindanao Command, the main headquarters of Armed Forces of the Philippines in Western part of Mindanao; the Philippine Army, Philippine Marines, and Philippine Navy are assigned to that command. The "Camp Enrile" and other three military camps can be found in the city. It is the former capital of Moro Province now Mindanao Island (1903 to 1913) in thePhilippines. On September 15, 1911, the Municipalidad de Zamboanga was converted into a Ciudad by the legislative order Act. No.272.[8] It is known as CIUDAD LATINA DE ASIA in Zamboangueo Language or in English Language Asia's Latin City for its strong Hispanic/Latin influence. Currently, Ciudad de Zamboanga is one of the primary hubs in the Philippines, being the premier city in Zamboanga Peninsula Region in terms of commerce, trade, health services, financial institutions and education.[9][10] Ciudad de Zamboanga serves as an entry point in the Philippines to many destinations in Southeast Asia.

Population Projection:
YEAR 1997 2000 2006 2012 TOTAL POPULATION 536,906 582,260 684,785 805,363 HOUSEHOLD POPULATION 535,074 580,233 682,305 802,334

Trade and Industry:

Low Industrial Productivity Due to inadequate post-harvest handling and storage facilities, collection of products for processing is difficult for processors. Consequently, value-added for agricultural/marine-base produce is not optimized and the industries have not developed and expanded as expected. In Region IX, regional labor productivity is P18, 675 gross domestic products per employed person, which is just 70% of the national average in 1994; it is the lowest in Mindanao.

Low Investment Generation The creation of good business climate for investments needs to be undertaken, primarily through the provision of local incentives to priority industries and ease of access to information and business registration. (An investments incentive ordinance is pending before the Sangguniang Panlungsod). Similarly, infrastructure support facilities for identified industrial and commercial sites should be prioritized to attract investors from the locality and the BIMP_EAGA. For one, inefficient power distribution is a problem. Also, the transfer of seaport and airport would help a lot to accelerate the industrial development of the City. The poor road condition increases the transport cost of products. This needs to be addressed too.

Further Development of Trading Trading should be encouraged and developed as the people have shown their inherent skills in trading. Consequently, trading investments on shipping and allied services should be promoted. Similarly, the high cost of shipping and transport is deterring the City from becoming the shopping capital of the BMP-EAGA.

Public and Finance:

City Expenditure Growth and Allocation Patterns The City of Zamboanga is rising to the challenges of urbanization and the 1991 Local Government Code. The total expenditure of Zamboanga City increased for a nominal annual growth rate of 22.14 percent (see Table VII-4, Volume 2) between 1990 and 1996. Such increase may be attributed to the following factors1 Income effects, e.g. rising standards of living and greater expectations from the city constituents with regard to the city services and facilities. The income effects are further heightened by demonstration effects as urban dweller Filipinos, get exposed to developed country standards arising from the increasing thrust toward the globalization of the Philippine economy. Inflation, which averages about 10% inflation drives up urban government spending because it increases the cost of materials and supplies, and eventually, increases the salaries of government employees. Diseconomies of agglomeration, e.g., traffic congestion and tremendous pressures brought about by unplanned mega-developments which city governments have to increasingly deal with at high incremental cost. Dealing with these largely external costs are critical to keep the cost of doing business in the clients competitive; and,

Public service employment, when urban governments are viewed as local employers of last resort. While the number of regular plantilla positions in many urban governments is moderate, the figures do not reflect the vast amount of part-time casual workers that work for various programs of the city government. Except for housing and community development, each sectoral concern registered significant increases particularly social security, labor and welfare employment with 36.43 percent increases. Education, culture and sports generated the heftiest increase with 58.31 improvements. These indicators reflect the city government thrust toward increasing the quality of life of its constituents. In per capita terms, however, Zamboanga City registered an 18.66 percent annual growth rate for the same period. From a government expenditure of P287.85 in 1990, the city posted a per capita expenditure of P788.78 in 1996. on the other hand, total local government expenditure for the country registered a higher growth rate of 27.67 percent between 1990 and 1994, from a per capita government expenditure rose to P803.71 in 1996.

Banks:
Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) it is the second branch opened in the Philippines with the encouragement of an American general that the second branch of El Banco Espaol Filipino was established in Zamboanga by General John J. Pershing, the famous American military governor of Zamboanga, encouraged the bank's management to open a branch in that part of Mindanao. The branch was finally established in February 1912, a month after the bank was officially renamed "Bank of the Philippine Islands" (BPI). That branch of BPI was eventually designated by the insular government as the official depository of funds for the province of Zamboanga and of the Zamboanga custom house. Gen. Pershing chose to locate his official residence on the second floor of the BPI branch in Zamboanga City.[58] Presently, there are more than 60 banks operating in Ciudad de Zamboanga. The banks with the most number of branches in the city are Metropolitan Bank and Trust Company, Allied Bank, Banco De Oro (BDO), Philippine National Bank (PNB), One Network Bank, Land Bank of the Philippines (LBP) and Union Bank of the Philippines. 3 brands of interbank networks of automated teller machines (ATMs) are widely used in the city; these are BancNet, Expressnet and MegaLink. List of Universal Banks in the Ciudad de Zamboanga are Allied Bank, Islamic Bank of the Philippines, Banco De Oro (BDO), Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI), China Banking Corporation (ChinaBank), Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP), Land Bank of the Philippines (LBP), Metropolitan Bank and Trust Company, Philippine National Bank (PNB), Rizal Commercial Banking Corporation, Security Bank, Union Bank of the Philippines, and United Coconut Planters Bank (UCPB). Commercial Banks are Asia United Bank, Bank of Commerce, East West Bank, Maybank, Philippine Bank of Communications (PBCOM), and Philippine Veterans Bank. Tharift Banks are Equitable Savings Bank (ESB), GE Money Bank, Philippine Postal Savings Bank, Philippine Savings Bank (PSBank), and RCBC Savings Bank. Rural Banks are Zamboanga City Rural Bank, Rural Bank of Siocon, Philippine Farmer's Bank, One Network Bank, First Valley Bank, Pen Bank and Bank of Makati. Most of the banks in the city are the head branches in the Zamboanga peninsula (and even in the country) such as Islamic Bank of the Philippines, Development Bank of the Philippines, Land Bank of the Philippines, Metropolitan Bank and Trust Company, Rizal

Commercial Banking Corporation and One Network Bank. The city also hosts several other financial firms.

Shopping Centers and Malls:

Mindpro Citimall - It was opened in the year 1996. It is the second mall in the city after the defunct Alta mall. It is the only shopping mall in the city that has cinemas. Yubenco Star Mall - A shopping complex that is located at Barangay Putik. It is the farthest mall from the city's main business district. Southway Square - It began its operations in the year 2007. The mall features one of the most modern architectural designs among the city's newest architectural features. Shoppers' Center - Zamboanga's newest mall. It is located within the city proper. Midtown Plaza Mall - A shopping mall located along Nuez Extension. Though operational for a few years now, most of this mall's stalls remain vacant. Robinson's Place Zamboanga - The mall will soon to rise along Nunez Extension. SM City Zamboanga - SM will soon to rise in the city. Gaisano Mall - had a planned to put the mall in the city, this will soon to rise in the city.