DAVAO CITY – Mindanao has emerged as a peaceful, stable and investment-ready island, with government leaders highlighting strong economic growth, improving governance and expanding investment opportunities as key drivers of the region’s next phase of development.
Speaking at the Mindanao Development Forum (MDF) 2026 on Tuesday here, Mindanao Development Authority (MinDA) Secretary Leo Tereso Magno said the long-standing debate on whether peace should precede development has been settled, noting that peace now prevails across Mindanao and is creating the conditions for sustained economic progress.
“Peace is no longer just an aspiration. It is a reality. Mindanao has become a haven for investments, a place where opportunities can grow, and a place where prosperity can finally take root for our people,” Magno said before government officials, business leaders, development partners and investors.
Magno reported that Mindanao’s economy grew by 4.69 percent in 2025, surpassing the national growth rate of 4.4 percent.
Five of the island’s six regions ranked among the country’s 10 fastest-growing economies, led by Caraga with 5.7 percent growth.
The Davao Region posted a 5.1 percent growth rate and maintained a gross regional domestic product (GRDP) exceeding PHP1 trillion for the third straight year, while Northern Mindanao sustained its trillion-peso economy with 4.9 percent growth.
Other regions, including the Zamboanga Peninsula and SOCCSKSARGEN, also recorded steady expansion driven by services, agriculture, agribusiness and manufacturing.
Magno also underscored gains in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM), describing its transformation as one of the country’s most significant success stories.
BARMM recorded a 5.0 percent growth rate in 2025, making it the sixth fastest-growing region nationwide.
Poverty incidence among families declined from 28 percent in 2021 to 23.5 percent in 2023, while investment registrations continued to rise.
The Bangsamoro Board of Investments approved PHP5 billion worth of projects in 2025, generating more than 2,000 jobs.
By April this year, registered investments had already reached PHP5.1 billion, creating more than 2,500 jobs.
“With peace and stability in place, and reforms that make investment easier and more predictable, Mindanao now stands at the nation’s front line,” Magno said, citing the island’s strategic location within the Brunei Darussalam-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines East ASEAN Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA).
Magno said the foundations of peace and governance have already been laid, and the focus now is on translating these gains into jobs, investments and improved living standards for more than 27 million Mindanaoans.
“Peace opened the door. Institutions built the foundation. Investments will fill it with jobs. If you invest in Mindanao, you invest in the whole East ASEAN Growth Area,” he added.
MDF 2026 is envisioned as a high-level development and investment platform that will bring together national and local government units, BARMM, private sector, financial institutions, development partners, academe, civil society and other stakeholders from across Mindanao.
The two-day forum will feature high-level discussions on Mindanao’s competitiveness, investment and financing landscape, PPPs, emerging and high-growth opportunities, agriculture and agribusiness, energy and infrastructure, BARMM’s economic development and other priority sectors.
It will also feature an investment and partnership marketplace designed to facilitate business matching, investment pitching and engagements among LGUs, BARMM, investors, businesses and development partners. (PNA)
