MEMORIAL PARKS,

CEMETERY,
COLUMBARY
The Study of Memorial Service Industry
December 1 to 20, 2022

St. Rafael Development Corporation

Pasay City
BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY
With the current trends in memorial industries, looming and becoming a necessity, as a foreground of
the increasing mortality data due mainly with the pandemic of CoVid 19, memorial services becomes the
new business opportunity. In the Philippines where vast tracks of land are being converted into
industrial complex or real estate business, the memorial service industries follow in toe.

A land suitable for business, a ready and steady market, a product offering that already a necessity – this
trifecta is a perfect bouillabaisse for a business venture that surely will suits the Filipino people needs
and will boom-up in the years to come.

San Rafael Development Corporation (SRDC) is a real estate company originated in the Visayas and
already a word of mouth within the industry. From offering high-end projects to socialized housing for
the low income strata, SRDC continuously abide to its values of being God-centered and giving the most
qualitative and affordable abode for the people. From housing, SRDC is trying to dip its finger on the
memorial service industry to pursuit it vision of serving the Filipino people thru service and care.

The objective of this study is basically to investigate and know the nitty-gritty of the memorial service
industry, the latest trends and its projectile in the future. This aims to present a backgrounder in the
industry and able to build a systematic and organize plan for a business start-up.

The whole study will be in two phases, first is the Luzon scenario with focus on Baliuag, Bulacan and
Dasmariñas, Cavite and on the second phase will be a study of the Visayas area, i.e. Bacolod City and
Iloilo City.

BURYING THE DEAD, THE PHILIPPINES’ SILENT CLASS WAR

Filipinos being widely Catholic and devout Christians always give the highest honors to their dear
departed love ones. These customs and traditions are common and withstanding social classes and
economic competence. A common Filipino earning a minimum wage or below will try to solicit from
relatives, politicos or affluent neighbors or even go on house to house and buses or jeepnies just to
source out enough funds for the burial services, others will go promote gambling activity like “sakla”,
“tong-its” and bingo during wakes for the tip or the “tong”and “balato”, although games - kulasisi ng
hari, huego del muerte, quajo, etc., in wakes are a long time traditions, a practice to reduce boredom
and grief, but nowadays it was turn into an entrepreneurial activity to produce extra financial source to
augment the burial’s expenditures , or family of the departed extends the wake for long period for the
“abuloy” or financial aid or even go to loan sharks just to give their departed ones a decent burial. On
the other hand, the rich and upper classes usually conduct the wake in the traditional way but without
the hassle of financial constraints. Usually most of the middle and upper classes already owned a
memorial life plan and a burial site, ever ready for the final time.

While the common people and lower income strata wallows in cheap burial services and overcrowded
cemeteries, the upper class are into memorial parks complete with amenities, a scenic view, clean and
fresh well-manicured lawns and hundreds of thousands of pesos worth of structure like mausoleums,

1|Page Memorial Parks, Cemetery, Columbary

crypt and ossuaries, very much more expensive relative to the dilapidated homes of the country’s
marginalized poor.

A cliché says that everybody dies; but in the Philippines class distinction and division is still evident even
in death. The poor living in hell due to poverty and dies nonchalantly like a mongrel, either in hunger, in
illness or summary executed, while the rich, dies in style and class with all the grandeur and assurance of
paradise in the life-after.

This study will try to present the memorial industry in the Philippines, i.e. the cemetery business,
columbarium and cremations and funerals. With the escalation of the pandemic or CoVid 19 virus that
resulted in the increase of death, the memorial business experiences a morbid boom, capitalizing in
increasing per daily statistics of death all over the country. Henceforth, the study will try to bind the
loose strands on this business and will try to ascertain gaps and projections of the memorial industry.

HISTORY OF BURIAL IN THE PHILIPPINES

As early as 4500 years ago our ancestors already had burial practices. The pre-colonial practice of
disposing dead bodies is shown in archeological findings in Palawan, Mulanay, Quezon, Butuan, Cebu
and in Province of Cagayan.

On much later centuries, just like dolmens burial in the Western world, the early Filipinos practices
internment in secured and categorically sacred places likes caves. The earliest known flexed burials in
the archipelago are those from Bubog Cave in Ilin Island in Mindoro dated 5000 years ago, and Duyong
Cave and Sa’gung Rockshelter in Palawan dated about 4500-4000 years ago; none bearing pottery yet.

Flexed burial position, along with

seated burial, cremation, and
mutilation, are part of complex
burial practices that emerged in
Island Southeast Asia after about
12,000 years ago.

9500 – 9000 years on the past, the

pre-colonial Philippines practices
cremation. The earliest evidence of
this practice was found in Ille Cave
in the province of Palawan. A
compact charred stack of organized
bones showed evidence of
disarticulation, fragmentation,
burning and re-fragmentation before internment in a container (earthen jars).

Burial in extended supine or lying on the back is probably the most familiar and common interment
position. Archeological diggings in Mulanay, Quezon in 2012, found out that our ancestors also practices

2|Page Memorial Parks, Cemetery, Columbary

burying departed relatives using sarcophagi just like the Egyptian while in San Remigio in Cebu in 2012,
burial jars were also discovered buried in white sands.

A period after the primary burial or initial burials that involve laying the remains on the ground or in a
container and when already decompose, it was customary to transfer the bone and teeth remains into
burial containers. Earthenware burial jars from open-air and cave burial sites dated as early as the
Neolithic Period were found to be mainly used for secondary burial, and to bury infants. Jar burial
tradition seemed to be prevalent along or near coastal regions, though it was also observed in other
places even until relatively recent times.

A Southeast Asian tradition of

interring the dead in boat-shaped
coffins is evidenced in several 12th-
15th-century Philippine
archaeological sites.

The arrival of Spaniards and

introduction of Christianity
eventually changed the burial
culture, albeit the Igorots and Moros
in the south who still practice their
tradition.

With the foundation of Pueblong

Bayan in the 18th century, the Spanish
colonizer introduces a new system of
disposing the dead. This is in
accordance with the Christian faith
and part of eradicating the traditional
and pre-colonial culture. Cemeteries
begins which categorizes Christian
from non-Christian and consolidates
further the masses in terms of cultural
subjugation, hence the campo santo,
sementeryo or himlayan came upon.

The Chinese or Sangleys being confined in the outskirt and beyond the walled city of Intramuros and
hamletted in the so-called parian was never allowed to be buried in Christian cemeteries, whereupon
they established their own burial grounds, the Chinese cemetery in La Loma which is in juxtapose with
the oldest cemetery of the country, the La Loma Cemetery established in 1864. The Americans highly
influenced the modern internment in the country upon the introduction of the Memorial Parks.
Memorial Parks introduced the garden and scenery design of cemeteries hence giving a certain serenity

3|Page Memorial Parks, Cemetery, Columbary

and calmness for the families of the departed. Around the 1960s, Memorial Parks was first established
in the country. Loyola Memorial Park, Manila Memorial Parks and Himlayang Filipino are the pioneers
on this industry.

The Christianization of the Philippines eventually concludes the pre-colonial culture and traditions of the
ancient Philippines.

THE MEMORIAL SERVICE INDUSTRY

TOP MEMORIAL PARKS IN THE PHILIPPINES

Garden-like memorial parks are already an influenced of the Americans, data says that around 1948,
American Cemetery in Taguig City was established to interred American war veterans who was killed in
action within Southeast Asia during the Second World War. Meanwhile the oldest among the private
memorial parks in the country are the Manila Memorial Park in Paranaque City, established in 1964 and
Holy Cross Memorial Park in Novaliches, Caloocan City who was established in the 1965. The top
memorial parks based on approval by the buying public and its popularity and certain foothold in the
business are as follows;

a. The Heritage Park (Taguig City)

The Heritage Park was first introduced in the

year 2001 and was currently owned by
Philplans. Philplans is one of the leading
financial institutions here in the Philippines
that offer education, pension, and memorial
programs. It is located at C5 Taguig City and
has a 76-hectare land area.

The memorial park also launches its

mortuary and crematory in the year 2004 to
provide the different needs of its customers.

Here are the memorial lots offered by The Heritage Park;

• Lawn lot
• Family Garden Lot
• Private Estate lot
• Private Mausoleum

4|Page Memorial Parks, Cemetery, Columbary

 b. Forest Lake Memorial Park

Forest Lake Memorial Park was owned

by Landco Pacific Corporation and
launched its first memorial Park in 1997
at Zamboanga City. For over 24 years,
Forest La ke has had more than 30 parks
nationwide in Luzon, Visayas, and
Mindanao. The amenities of the
memorial park are;

Multi-purpose halls, gazebo and trellis,

beautifully designed signage, and the
Mediterranean-inspired gates and
guardhouse.

They offer multiple products like;

• Lawn Lot
• Mini Mausoleum
• Estate Lot
• Legacy Lot

c. Eternal Gardens Memorial Park

On August 11, 1976, the “Eternal Gardens is one of

the pioneers in the Philippine memorial care
industry. It was founded by Ambassador Antonio L.
Cabangon Chua that develops the first-class
memorial parks in Dagupan (1983) and opened 11
branches all over the country. For almost 40 years,
the Eternal Gardens Memorial Park has had
excellent facilities to match the customer’s
satisfaction.

Here are the Memorial Lots offered by the Eternal Gardens;

• Lawn Lot- with 1 meter by 2.44 meters property
• Garden Lot
• Heritage Estate- Sold per block minimum of 12 lots.
• Family Estate- Sold per block with minimum of 18 lots
• Crypt

5|Page Memorial Parks, Cemetery, Columbary

d. Everest Hills Memorial Park

Everest Hills Memorial Park was

founded by the Vasquez-Madrigal
group of companies and a subsidiary
of Peak Development that has wide
acres of trees, a b eautiful landscape,
and a s

Secured environment to encourage

the families to visit their deceased
loved ones more often than usual. It
also has a 100-hectare property and
for more than 20 years, there are 2
branches of Everest Hills which are
located at Susana Heights, Muntinlupa
City, and Mapagong Calamba, Laguna.

Here are the memorial products of Everest Hills Memorial Park;

• Lawn lots
• Memorial Court
• Presidential Court
• Family Estate

e. Loyola Memorial Park

The Loyola Memorial Park was

introduced in 1965 and was one of the
first to introduce the practice of lawn
burials. The man behind the
development of Loyola Memorial Park is
Mr. Gil Puyat that comes from a
prominent family of business clans.
Before it was named Loyola, Mr. Puyat
builds another branch of his memorial
park in Sucat, and Marikina City. The
Marikina branch was also covered by the
land area of Loyola Heights in Quezon City that’s why it was later named after the location. It was also
one of the largest memorial parks in the City of Manila that covers a land area of 36,000 square meters.

6|Page Memorial Parks, Cemetery, Columbary

f. Golden Haven Memorial Park

Golden Haven Memorial Park is

founded by the Former Senate
President Mr. Manuel Villar Jr. In
1984 to provide a premier death
care service and hailed as the
largest and most beautiful
memorial park in the Philippines
with over 30 branches
nationwide. It has the most
complete death care provider in
our country that offers a unique
and superior service to give the
best care for your deceased loved ones when it comes from value for money, quality service, beautiful
and serene parks that consists of landscaped gardens, paved walkways, water fountains, and
extraordinary architectural designs. These are the amazing amenities of Golden Haven Memorial Park
and this is just a preview of their astonishing service that caters to the unending needs of the customers.

There are a lot of choices you can select are as follows;

• Lawn Lot – Suitable for two on a 2.5 square meter lot
• Mausoleum (Family Estate)- Measuring 30 square meter
• Garden Lot- With three or more adjacent lawn lots that can accommodate 6 or more on a 7.5 sqm
area.
• Family Patio

Golden Haven also offers other memorial services:

• Restoration and Make-up
• Hearse Rental
• Flower Arrangements
• Storage Rental
• Engraving

Other memorial products that our chapel offers:

• Urns
• Cremation Service
• Caskets
• Accessories
• Necklace Keepsakes
• Bangles Keepsakes
• Filipiñana and Barong Tagalog

7|Page Memorial Parks, Cemetery, Columbary

MEMORIAL PARKS PRICE AND PRODUCT OFFERINGS

Below is a sampling of the few cemeteries and memorial parks in Bulacan and Cavite. Incorporated in
the matrix are the company names, location, product or the service being offered, price and
backgrounder on the developer.

BULACAN AREA

MEMORIAL LOCATION PRODUCT / DEVELOPER/ AMOUNT/

PARKS SERVICE OFFERED COMPANY PRICE
Mt.Zion Baliuag, Family Estate Fil-Estate Family Estate Prices :
Memorial Park Bulacan with niches Management, Inc. P1M – P3.2M
with other Maximum niche size: (FEMI) was
branches in H – .40m x W – .45m x incorporated on May Lot Garden
L – 1.00m
Visayas, 19, 1999. Price: P290,000 –
Maximum of three (3)
Northern niches are allowed to
P700,000
and be interned.
Southern Lot Garden Lawn Lot
Luzon with niches Price: P60,000 –
Maximum niche size: P90,000
H – .40m x W – .45m x
L – 1.00m
Maximum of three (3)
niches are allowed
Lawn Lot
Size: 1m x 2.44m
Tier: Double-Tiered
Vaults: Two
Internment:
Underground
Marker: 1 Marker on
top of lot

Sanctuario de Norzagaray, Lawn Active Group, San Lawn Lot

Paz Memorial Bulacan GardenLot Agustin Realty, Inc Price: 64, 680 to
Park Family Estate (SARI). 93,786
Sanctuario started to Garden Lot
operate in 1984 Price: 284, 592 to
620, 928

Family Estate
Price: 1.2M to 2.1M

Golden Haven Norzagaray, Lawn Lot – Suitable Golden MV Holdings Price: Php80,000 to
Memorial Park Bulacan with for two on a 2.5 Inc. of the Villar 1.6M

8|Page Memorial Parks, Cemetery, Columbary

 branches square meter lot Family. Owner of the
nationwide. Mausoleum (Family largest Real Estate
(35 projects Estate)- Measuring Company in the
in 32 30 square meter Philippine and on top
locations all Garden Lot- With 5 richest men in the
over the three or more country according to
country) adjacent lawn lots Forbes Magazine.
that can
accommodate 6 or Established in 1984.
more on a 7.5 sqm
area.
Family Patio

Forest Lake San Miguel, Lawn Lots Forest Lake Price: Php90,000 to
Memorial Parks Bulacan with Mini-Mausoleum Development, 2M
branches all Mausoleums Incorporated.
over Luzon, Estate Lot Forest Lake started
Visayas and Legacy Lot 25 years ago in
Mindanao. Zamboanga.
Around 30 In 1997 it was
branches incepted and
nationwide. became a subsidiary
of Landco Pacific
Corporation and
currently became
subsidiary of Metro
Pacific Investment
Corporation (MPIC)
with Php429 million
or 61.9% of
investment stake.
MPIC is owned by
Manny V. Pangilinan.

CAVITE AREA

MEMORIAL LOCATION PRODUCT / SERVICE DEVELOPER/ AMOUNT/

PARKS OFFERED COMPANY PRICE
Golden Haven Amadeo, Same with other Golden Villar Group of Php95,000 to
Eco-Memorial Cavite Haven Memorial Parks. Companies Php1.450M
Park The difference is the
amenities that includes a
butterfly garden, mini-
zoo, ecopark, nature, etc.

9|Page Memorial Parks, Cemetery, Columbary

Providence Dasmariñas, Lawn Lots Sr. Sto. Niño de Cebu Php 53,000 to
Memorial Park Cavite Memorial Court Lots Resources and Php1.6M
Branches in Estate Lots: Development
Antipolo, Harmony Estate Corporation
Rizal and Solace Estate
Sta. Maria, Legacy Estate
Bulacan

Manila Memorial Dasmariñas, Lawn Lots Manila Memorial Park, Php67,000 to

Park Cavite (93 Mausoleums Incorporated Php2.4M
hectares) Cremations
Branches in Columbaries
NCR, Funeral Service
Bulacan,
Cebu and
Davao

Heavens Garden Rosario, Lawn Lots Founded by the Php67,000

Memorial Park Cavite (10 Mausoleums Tamayo family in 2003 to Php690K
hectares lot) Crematorium with Joint venture
Branches in Columbaries Venture Agreement
Antipolo, with Daimar
Laguna, International Realty
Quezon, and Development
Baguio Corporation project in
the city of Binan.
Dr./Brig. Gen. Antonio
L. Tamayo, Chaiman of
Board & President of
both the Tamayo
Family & Daimar.

Heavenly Garden Trece Lawn Lots Heavenly Garden Php55,000 to

Memorial Park Martirez, Four-Lot Garden Development Php3M
Cavite (75 Eight-Lot Garden Corporation and
hectares of Garden Family Estate Members of Filipino-
land) (15 Lot) Chinese Chamber of
Jr. Family Estate (24 Commerce (FCCI)
Lot) Corporate Shareholders
Sr. Family Estate (36 Mr. Jimmy Tang (Avesco
Lot) Marketing)
Chairman of the Board
Mr. Jeffrey Ng
(CAPASCO)
President
Atty. Ricardo T. Chu Jr.
(Royal Goldcraft, Inc.)
Corporate Secretary
10 | P a g e Memorial Parks, Cemetery,
Columbary
Jardin de Alfonso, Columbarium Garsama Empire Columbarium:
Memoria Cavite Apartment Niche Realty Corporation 76,000 to 88,000
Lawn Lots Apartment Niche:
Family Estates 82,000 to 105K
Angel Lots Lawn Lots: 152K
to 188K
Family Estates:
352K
Angel Lots:94,000

OTHER MEMORIAL SERVICE

 Gethsemane Memorial Park

Antipolo City, Rizal

11 | P a g e Memorial Parks, Cemetery,

Columbary
  St. Therese Columbarium
Pasay City

12 | P a g e Memorial Parks, Cemetery,

Columbary
While death absolves one of debt and all other
financial obligations, loved ones carry the burden of
the cost of burial and other services on top of grief.

The thought of preparing for death may sound

morbid to some, saving up for the inevitable is
practical and responsible. Moreover, financial
advisors found that funeral services and other
associated expenses have grown at around 3% to
5% yearly.

Coffin. Depending on materials used, coffins cost

around P5,000 to P110,000. The cheapest wood
coffin with little to no design can be bought in
cheap funeral parlors. St Peter’s metal caskets cost
from around P37,000 to as much as P105,000.

Cremation. If the family opts to cremate their loved

one, prices start at around P70,000 to almost
P100,000. St Peter’s package already includes a full cremation service, an urn, and a 3-day viewing
service in their mortuary chapels.

Should families opt to leave the remains in a columbarium, prices range from around P30,000 to almost
P180,000. Columbary prices in Heritage Park Fort Bonifacio start at P157,000 and can go as high as
P240,000. Meanwhile, prices in Loyola Memorial Park’s columbarium average P46,000.

Memorial Services. For convenience, families can opt to get burial packages. Arlington Memorial’s burial
packages start at around P240,000, which already includes a steel casket and a full memorial package for
3 to 5 days. The most expensive package is worth almost P2.4 million, which includes a 48-ounce
brushed bronze casket with gold plated hardware.

Lot. The final resting place of the departed could be the most burdensome of all the expenses and can
cost even more than a typical condominium unit. Companies like Golden Haven offer garden plots that
start at P360,000, while a garden plaza can cost as high as P1.4 million.

The cheapest in Heritage Memorial Park is a lawn lot worth P224,000. Garden lots there cost from P2.2
million to P2.8 million. For the affluent, estate lots that measure about 40 square meters would cost a
whopping P20.1 million. Meanwhile, affordable cemetery lots cost P35,000 on average. For the poorest
families, Caritas Manila offers free coffins and burial services for the deceased.

Apart from documentary requirements, other expenses include flowers, food, and clothing of the dead.
These expenses depend on how simple or grand a family wants the memorial services to be. While the
dead cannot bring their wealth to the afterlife, the divide between the rich and the poor is still evident
in how they are sent off.

13 | P a g e Memorial Parks, Cemetery,

Columbary
The price of Columbary vaults varies depending on the location. In Metro Manila, the average cost of a
columbary vault is Php 80,000 to Php 300,000 while memorial lots ranges from 70,000 to as much as a
million especially for above ground internment and mausoleums.

DEATH DATA AND BURIAL SCENARIOS IN THE PHILIPPINES

With the rapid spread of CoVid 19 virus that left the country flabbergasted and the government exposed
on its inutility and irresoluteness in addressing the health care system of the country, the people
experienced the most horrendous realities of death that created an emotional void on every Filipinos.
Glaring is the shooting up of number of deaths especially the middle and lower strata of society.

According to the latest WHO data published in 2020 life expectancy in Philippines is:

MALE FEMALE TOTAL WORLD RANK

67.4 73.6 70.4 119

The leading causes of death as of 2020 are:

1.Coronary Heart 11. Asthma 21. Cervical 31.Inflammatory/ 41.Maternal

Disease Cancer Heart Conditions

2. Influenza and 12.Endocrine 22. Other 32. Leukemia 42.Rheumatic

Pneumonia Disorders Neoplasms Heart Disease

3. Stroke 13. Violence 23. Malnutrition 33. Other Injuries 43.Uterin Cancer

4. Kidney Disease 14. Lung Cancers 24. Diarrheal 34. Drowning 44.Pertussis
Diseases
5. Lung Disease 15. Road Traffic 25. Low Birth 35. Oral Cancer 45.Prostatic
Accidents Weight Hypertrophy
6. Hypertension 16. Colon- 26. Congenital 36. Alzheimer & 46.Epilepsy
Rectum Cancers Anomalies Dementia

7. Diabetes Mellitus 17. Peptic Ulcer 27. Falls 37. Pancreas 47.Osteoarthritis
Disease Cancer
8. Tuberculosis 18. Liver Cancer 28. Birth Trauma 38. Lymphomas 48.Meningitis

9. Breast Cancer 19. Liver Disease 29. Anemia 39. Suicide 49.Syphilis

14 | P a g e Memorial Parks, Cemetery,

Columbary
10. Prostate Cancer 20. Skin Disease 30. Ovary 40.Stomach Cancer 50.Dengue
Cancer

Top 10 Cause of Death in the Philippines in 2020

On the data above, heart disease is still the leading cause of death followed by pneumonia or in the case
of mid-2022 to early 2022 can be considered as CoVid 19 virus. Dengue who’s in early years of 2000 was
one of the top causes of death especially for children, is already on the 50th position, meaning that the
country already knows and has the capability to address this mosquito born disease

In 2020, a total of 613,936 deaths

were registered in the Philippines, a
decline of -1.0 percent from 620,414
in 2019. This is equivalent to a crude
death rate of 5.6, or about six deaths
per 1,000 populations in 2020. This
corresponds to an average of 1,677
deaths per day, which translates to
70 deaths per hour or one (1.2) death
per minute.

The number of registered deaths

from 2011 to 2020 has trended
upward except in the years 2017 and
2020. The increase during the ten-
year period was 23.2 percent, from 498,486 in 2011 to 613,936 in 2020. (Figure 1 and Table 1)

Highest number of deaths reported in CALABARZON

The highest number of

registered deaths by usual
residence occurred in
CALABARZON with 94,898
(15.5%), followed by
National Capital Region
(NCR) with 84,355 (13.7%),
and Central Luzon with
71,756 (11.7%). The
combined share of these
three regions was 40.9
percent of the total
registered deaths in 2020.

On the other hand, the

three regions which had
the least number of
registered deaths were
Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) with 4,626 (0.8%), Cordillera Administrative Region
15 | P a g e Memorial Parks, Cemetery,
Columbary
(CAR) with 8,540 (1.4%), and Caraga with 15,806 (2.6%). These regions accounted for only 4.7 percent of
the overall registered deaths in the Philippines in the same year. (Figure 2 and Table 2)

August 2020 had the most number of deaths

In 2020, the average number of deaths registered per day was the highest in August at 1,833 or about
76 deaths per hour. The month of March had the lowest number of deaths registered per day at 1,484
or equivalent to 62 deaths per hour. (Figure 3 and Table 3)

Daily index refers to the increase/decrease from the overall daily average of event occurrences. The
months of February to June fall below the national daily index of 100.0 in 2020. In other words, daily
average deaths in these months were lower than the national daily average of 1,677 deaths. (Figure 3
and Table 3)

More male deaths than female deaths recorded

Figure 4 shows the age-sex structure

of registered deaths in 2020. It shows
an inverted pyramid, with fewer
deaths at the younger ages, except for
children under one, and progressively
increasing as people grow older. In
the Philippines, the number of male
deaths (351,426) was higher than
female deaths (262,510) in 2020. The
proportion of males who died was
highest at the age of 65 to 69 years
old (41,021 or 11.7% of male deaths)
while for females, the largest was at

16 | P a g e Memorial Parks, Cemetery,

Columbary
the oldest age group, 85 years old and over (42,386 or 16.1% of female deaths). (Figure 4 and Table 4)

The sex ratio of 134 indicates that there were about 134 male deaths for every 100 female deaths.
Moreover, sex ratio of over a hundred means that more male deaths were registered compared to their
female counterparts at each age group before 80 years old. Further, higher proportions of female
deaths were observed in the older age groups (80 years old and over) compared to its male
counterparts. (Figure 4 and Table 4)

Six out of ten deaths were attended

by health care provider

Attendant refers to a private

physician, public health officer,
hospital authority, or any other
allied health care provider who
provided medical attendance to the
deceased.

Out of 613,936 registered deaths,

55.9 percent or 343,471 deaths
were medically attended. Only two
regions, namely: MIMAROPA Region
(46.4%), and Eastern Visayas (52.5%)
had more unattended than
attended deaths. (Figure 5 and
Table 5)

Over half of the total registered deaths occurred at home

In 2020, 346,347 or 56.4 percent of the total deaths occurred at home while 261,531 or 42.6 percent
died in any health facilities. Some (0.9%)
died in places other than home and health
facilities, such as on the street, in public
places, on board a vehicle, airplane or
vessel while in transit, among others.
However, 0.1 percent of deaths have
undetermined or unspecified sites because
of the missing information in the place of
death or usual residence of the decedent.

Among the 17 regions, only NCR had more

deaths that occurred in hospital facilities
than any other site of occurrence at 60.3
percent. (Figure 6 and Table 6)

17 | P a g e Memorial Parks, Cemetery,

Columbary
Highest number of infant deaths recorded in CALABARZON

Infant deaths are deaths that occurred before reaching age 1. At the national level, 16,885 infant deaths
were registered in 2020. Six out of ten deaths were males (9,767 or 57.8%). The three regions with the
highest number of infant deaths recorded were CALABARZON (3,000 or 17.8%), NCR (2,859 or 16.9%),
and Central Luzon (1,996 or 11.8%).

On the other hand, ARMM (150 or 0.9%), CAR (210 or 1.2%) and Caraga (349 or 2.1%) had the least
number of registered infant deaths. (Figure 7 and Table 7)

Highest number of maternal deaths recorded in CALABARZON

A maternal death is defined by the World Health Organization as, “the death of a woman while pregnant
or within 42 days of termination of
pregnancy, irrespective of the duration
and the site of the pregnancy, from any
cause related to or aggravated by the
pregnancy or its management, but not
from accidental or incidental causes.’’ In
2020, a total of 1,975 women were
identified as having died of maternal
causes in the country.

Among all regions, CALABARZON

recorded the highest number of maternal
deaths with 344 (17.4% share), followed
by NCR with 277 (14.0%), and Central
Luzon and Central Visayas with 199 each
or 10.1 percent share. On the other hand, CAR
(23 or 1.2%) and ARMM (34 or 1.7%), recorded
the least number of maternal deaths. (Figure 8
and Table 8)

Ischaemic heart diseases led causes of deaths

Deaths due to ischaemic heart diseases were

the biggest contributors among the total
deaths in 2020, making up some 17.1 percent
(105,281) of the total registered deaths. This
was followed by deaths due to neoplasms, also
known as “cancer”, at some 10.8 percent
(66,342). Cerebrovascular diseases (including
stroke) were behind accounting for 10.5
percent (64,381) of the total deaths. Mortality
due to Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19),
virus not identified, also ranked among the
leading causes of deaths with 20,872 or 3.4
percent of the total registered deaths, making
it the 7th leading cause of death. By sex, similar

18 | P a g e Memorial Parks, Cemetery,

Columbary
trend with some deviations in the ranking among the leading causes of deaths was observed. (Figure 9
and Table 9).

Problems of burial are imminent in NCR, various LGUs already designed and planned building new burial
sites but due to lack of available lands, LGUs resulted to establish columbarium alongside cremation
facilities for a more practical way of laying to rest departed love ones.

Almost all cemeteries in NCR are experiencing burial congestion, even private memorial parks are
already sold out; hence some big players in the industry resulted to establishing and developing
memorial parks outside the capital, others add up new services i.e. columbarium and crematories.

With the death data of 470,000 deaths per year from 2000 to 2017 as per PSA records, and with the
upsurge due to the pandemic; new innovations and practical planning are really in need for properly
disposing the dead.

Based on standards set by the Housing and Land Use Regulatory Board (HLURB), the minimum size for a
burial plot in ground interment is 1 meter by 2.44 meters, or an area of 2.44 square meters. The
minimum size for a single compartment or vault in a columbarium is 300 millimeters by 300 millimeters,
or an area of 0.09 square meters.

GMA News Research estimates that every year, the country needs an area of about 1.15 million square
meters--nearly thrice the size of Rizal Park--to bury its dead in underground niches. But only 42,439
square meters or one-tenth the size of the famous Manila landmark are needed if those who died were
cremated and inurned instead.

BURIAL SCENARIOS
ESTIMATED DEMAND FOR INTERMENT SPACE

TYPE OF STANDARD MINIMUM SIZE TOTAL DEMAND

AREA
INTERMENT (LxW) FOR SPACE

Ground Interment 1.00 m x 2.44 m 2.44 sq. m. 1.15 million sq. m.

Tomb 1.60 m x 3.00 m 4.80 sq. m. 2.26 million sq. m.

Mausoleum 4.00 m x 5.00 m 20.00 sq. m. 9.43 million sq. m.

Columbarium /
0.30 m x 0.30 m 0.09 sq. m. 42,439 sq. m.
Ossuary
Source: GMA News Research based on HLURB and PSA data

The computation does not factor in other alternatives such as interment in mausoleums and above-
ground entombment, both of which take up more space than underground niches. The computation
also assumes that there is only one niche to a burial plot and one urn to each vault.

19 | P a g e Memorial Parks, Cemetery,

Columbary
In reality, however, many cemeteries across the country have “apartment-style” niches stacked on top
of each other up to several layers high. In others, walkways were inadvertently if not inappropriately
converted into additional burial plots--all due to the lack of open space on which to dig or build new
niches.

HLURB statistics on issued licenses to sell real property in recent years show an increasing trend in the
number of memorial park and columbarium units up for sale.

NUMBER OF LICENSES TO SELL MEMORIAL PARK/COLUMBARIUM UNITS

YEAR NO. OF LICENSES % INCREASE

2015 163,492

2016 178,438 9%

2017 187,785 5%

2018 291,284 55%

Source: HLURB

According to GMA News, Engineer Anabel Narce of HLURB-NCR said most of the applications for license
to sell units in the “memorial park or columbarium” non-residential category in Metro Manila are
columbarium applications. Many of the memorial park applications are for provincial locations.

REGISTERED DEATHS IN THE PHILIPPINES

2000-2017

YEAR NO. OF DEATHS

2000 366,931

2001 381,834

2002 396,297

2003 396,331

2004 403,191

2005 426,054

2006 441,036

2007 441,956

20 | P a g e Memorial Parks, Cemetery,

Columbary
 2008 461,581

2009 480,820

2010 488,265

2011 498,486

2012 514,745

2013 531,280

2014 536,999

2015 560,605

2016 582,183

2017 579,237

AVERAGE 471,546

*Average computed by GMA News Research

Source: Philippine Statistics Authority

ANALYSIS AND CONCLUSION

STATEMENT OF PROBLEMS

Baliuag Site – Basically the 23 hectares property in Baliuag is suitable enough to build a memorial parks,
its location is very accessible not only to the would be local client but also within nearby municipalities
and even from the capital region. Problem areas for the said site is just a minimal, although there are
already memorial parks and public cemeteries within Baliuag, not to mention those in nearby
municipalities of San Ildefonso, San Miguel, Marilao, Meycuayan, Norzagaray, Pulilan and Bustos among
others, but still these memorial parks and cemeteries will not bridge the gap vis-à-vis the increasing
demand for a suitable interment for the departed ones especially that NCR are already overcrowded and
in need of burial facilities and services.

Dasmariñas Site – It is very glaring that this area although in a very good location being in near proximity
in the city proper or poblacion, still not suitable for a memorial park business. Various issues and gray
areas should be address first before the project could materialize. These problems are as follows;

- Issue of right of way; the site is a land lock area without access for ingress and egress. The only
way into the area is via a small road which is part of a river easement; technically it is against the
law which states that easement should not be in use, either as roads, as residential or
commercial purposes.
- Assuming that the nearby subdivision (HOA) or the LGU facilitate accessibility into the site, the
issues of residents will again matter; problems like is it okay for them that a burial site is within

21 | P a g e Memorial Parks, Cemetery,

Columbary
 their neighborhood, that it will be okay for the subdivision’s resident, a hearse and mourning
relatives will be parading with their departed ones inside the subdivision, others may comment
that memorial parks is a detriment in their health and mental wellness.
- Security, exclusivity and protection will also be an issue once a cemetery or memorial parks will
put up within the area.

Generally price and product offering of every memorial business are on the same price bracket. Ranging
from 50,000 up to a million worth of cash, henceforth target market of the said industry caters the
middle income strata and the upper social echelons. With the increase of work-migration, the number of
OFWs surges, this sector of society adds ups to the target market of the said industry.

Real estate after its pitfalls due to the pandemic acquired a positive rebound with a 126 Billion Pesos
value in the 2nd Quarter of 2021. The Sentiment Index Score achieve an all-time high of 65 during the 4th
quarter of 2021. These indices are a manifestation that real estate is again on the road to affluency.

Acquiring a memorial lots are profitable investments. If you are a vying investor, you should know the
integrity of track records and their importance to making sound investment decisions. This is an
opportune time to enter the real estate market. Once the recovery of the industry is achieved in the
near future, you can expect the price to surge dramatically in value. Not to mention the fact that
memorial lots are considered nowadays to be more of a necessity than a luxury.

The prospect of memorial service industry is quite gleaming, this business alongside with other burial
service and health and wellness is the next best thing in the coming years.

22 | P a g e Memorial Parks, Cemetery,

Columbary
APPENDEXIS
LIST OF THE 62 MEMORIAL PARKS IN BULACAN
Angel of Meadows Memorial and Nature
Park – Sta. Maria
Angel’s Sanctuary Memorial Garden –
Bustos
Blessed Heart Memorial Garden – Balagtas
Bustos Memorial Park – Bustos
Bustos East Memorial Garden – Bustos
Calumpit Garden Memorial – Calumpit
Cherubim Of Heaven Memorial Park –
Hagonoy
Divine Garden Memorial Park – Marilao
Endless Love – Guiguinto
Eternal Jardin de San Andres Memorial Park
– Norzagaray
Forest Lake Memorial Park – San Miguel
Forest Lake Memorial Park – San Ildefonso
Garden of Love Memorial Park – Pulilan
Garden of Mercy Memorial Park – Hagonoy
Garden of Peace – Sta. Maria
Garden of Trinity Memorial Park – Angat
Gateway to Heaven Memorial Park – San
Rafael
Golden Haven Memorial Park – Norzagaray
Golden Heritage Memorial Garden –
Guiguinto
Good Shepherd Memorial Park – Bulakan
Green Haven Memorial Park – Sta. Maria
Hardin ng Pagmamahal (Formerly United
Memorial Park) – Baliuag
Hardin ng Sto.Nino Memorial Park – San
Jose Del Monte
Hillcross Memorial Park – Balagtas
Holy Haven Eternal Park – San Jose Del
Monte
Holy Love Garden Memorial Gardens –
Bulakan
Immaculate Conception Memorial
Cemetery – Pandi
Krus Sa Wawa Memorial Park – Bocaue
Krus Sa Wawa Memorial Park – Malolos
Lazaro Memorial Park – Bulakan
Legacy Memorial Park – Malolos
23 | P a g e Memorial Parks, Cemetery,
Columbary
Malolos Memorial Park – Malolos
Manila Memorial Park – Plaridel
Marcelo H. Del Pilar Memorial Park –
Bulakan
Marian Garden Memorial Park – Bocaue
Mary the Queen Memorial Gardens – Sta.
Maria
Meycauayan Memorial Park – Meycauayan
Mt. Moriah Memorial Park – Bustos
Mt. Zion Memorial Park – Baliuag
Mt. Zion Memorial Park – Calumpit
Obando Memorial Park - Obando
Our Lady of Eternal Peace a Memorial – San
Jose Del Monte
Pamana Memorial Park – Malolos
Pandi Eternal Resting Place – Pandi
Paombong Memorial Park – Paombong
Parque De Sta. Monica Memorial Park –
Pandi
Providence Memorial Park – Sta. Maria
Saint James Memorial Park – Plaridel
San Rafael Memorial Park – San Rafael
Sanctuario De Loma Memorial Park –
Marilao
Sanctuario De Paz Memorial Park –
Norzagaray
Sanctuario de San Nicolas Memorial Park –
Bulakan
Santa Isabel Memorial Park – Malolos
Sierra Madre Memorial Park – San Miguel
Sipat Memorial Park – Plaridel
St. Vincent Memorial Park – Malolos
St. Gabriel Memorial Park – Paombong
Sta. Rita De Cascial Memorial Park –
Guiguinto
Sta. Rita Memorial Park – San Miguel
The Galilee Memorial Park – Malolos
The Haven Memorial Park – Sta. Maria
Zaldea Memorial Park – Obando