SIPAWAY ISLAND—San Carlos City Mayor Gerardo V. Valmayor Jr. is eyeing to develop this small island as the next tourist destination in Negros Occidental.
Sipaway Island is composed of two barangays and boasts of some of the province’s beautiful diving spots.
Valmayor, who is serving his third and final term as mayor, is banking on the strength of the city’s sustained campaign against illegal fishing, which helped protect and conserve its rich coastal and marine resources.
San Carlos is one of the 42 towns and cities within the Tañon Strait Protected Seascape (TSPS), the country’s largest marine protected area (MPA) in the Visayas.
The TSPS is a narrow strait separating the island of Negros and Cebu. The protection and conservation of TSPS is getting the much-needed boost from international ocean-conservation group Oceana Philippines and Rare Philippines through various capacity-building and livelihood programs.
San Carlos City boasts of having the support of coastal barangays who have their own “Bantay Dagat” volunteers protecting the city’s territorial waters against commercial fishing vessels, as well as small fishermen from other towns and provinces who encroach in their municipal fishing ground.
Valmayor said San Carlos City is “off limits” to commercial fishing because the distance between the city and Toledo City, Cebu, is less than 15 kilometers, making that part of TSPS exclusive for fishing ground shared by the two cities.
“In our city, there is no commercial fishing because the distance from here to the next island, Toledo, is less than 15 kilometers. So within our waters, there is no commercial fishing. The Tañon Strait is very narrow on our side so there should be no commercial fishing in our waters,” Valmayor said.
Before, he added that there was commercial fishing in the waters of San Carlos City. He said the city’s municipal fishing ground is also besieged by destructive fishing activities, like the use of dynamite and cynaide.
“But that was a long time ago. When we started the campaign to promote responsible fishing, illegal fishing stopped,” he said.
The city boasts of two MPAs in Sipaway Island. The Barangay San Juan MPA is around 90 hectares, while the Barangay Ermita MPA is around 300 hectares. Both were established in 2005.
The prospect of turning the island into an ecotourism destination is bright, the mayor said.
“It was in 2013 when freshwater became available in this island. We have installed an underwater pipeline, bringing freshwater from the main island to this island at P25 per cubic liter. Last year we installed power here so this island now has 24/7 power supply,” he said.
With water and power available, he said the island’s 7,000 residents are optimistic of the prospects of ecotourism.
“We have a tourism development plan. We are promoting community-based coastal resource management,” he said.
Sipaway has two resorts so far, but he said there is a big chance that investment will pour for the establishment of more big resorts that will cater to both foreign and domestic tourists.
Philip Gerardo Maisog, executive assistant and concurrent city tourism officer of San Carlos, said the challenge is to encourage investors to invest in San Carlos City.
“We need more investors to set up shop. I’ve already talked to businessmen from Sipalay City and they made a commitment to look into the prospect of putting up business in Sipaway Island,” he said.
Maisog said Sipaway Island already has its own market—foreign divers or diving enthusiasts who frequent the place. Visitors are excited to see the diving spots around Sipaway Island.
Maisog said Sipaway’s dive spots is like Tubattaha, but only small.
“According to scientists, our dive spots is like Tubbataha Reef. But we haven’t actually seen it. The nearest airport to San Carlos is in Bacolod City, which is around two hours drive away,” he said.
The City Tourism Office is overhauling its tourism database.
“One of our challenge now is to establish our database. Right now, our tourist arrival is only 27,000. I think that number is inaccurate,” he said.
Maisog said he will propose to compel hotel-and-resort owners in San Carlos City to report tourist arrivals to the City Tourism Office to get an accurate representation of tourists visiting the city.
“We want to make reporting of tourist arrivals as a requirement for the issuance of business permits to come up with an accurate data,” he said.
He added that San Carlos currently has 384 rooms. Next year, he said this would increase to 500 rooms, with old and new resorts and small lodging inns undergoing expansion or construction.
San Carlos City celebrates the Pintaflores (which is derived from the words pinta, or paint, and flores, which means flowers) Festival every November 5.
From October, festivity begins and the festival culminates on November 5.
Held annually, the event is all about a fusion of arts and nature, which San Carlos City is known for.
1 comment
This mayor is a doofus.
He doesnt know and done anything. His city is plagued with jobless people, drug addicts.
All he is good for is doing press release.