Davao has world’s most modern airport

“EVEN if you have a crippled aircraft with one engine flying, trying to land in the middle of a strong typhoon, you can still land safely at your Davao international airport,” said William D. Krelle, 76, an Australian engineer.

Krelle, one of the foreign engineering consultants who helped built the Davao International Airport in 1995, said this airport here in the south is “undoubtedly the safest airport in the world” and was surprised to learn that very few people know this fact.

“Without any doubt, I can say now that the Davao International Airport is the most modern airport in the world — it’s far better than Hong Kong airport,”
Krelle stressed.

Krelle now runs a seafood export company in Davao with Filipino partners and commutes regularly between Davao and Darwin, Northern Territory and Melbourne, Australia using a long flight route that takes him to Singapore and Manila for two days before reaching Davao.

What made the Davao airport “the world’s most modern airport,” according to Krelle, are the new modern landing facilities and state-of-the-art computerized equipment installed by a Norwegian airport systems engineer that are used today by some of the world’s biggest airports.

Krelle explained that the unusual mound that curves upward in the middle of the Davao runway is a deliberate engineering design that helps propel an aircraft into the air during take-off and also helps an aircraft land smoothly.

The length of the Davao airport’s runway at 3,300 meters is also at par with that of the country’s international airports as Mactan at 3,300 meters, Clark airbase at 3,200 meters, and Manila (Ninoy) international airport at 3,700 meters, almost the same as the General Santos international airport runway. (Aurelio A. Pena, PhilPress Feature)

Another ace in Davao’s convention industry.

If plans would be pursued, Davao City will soon have another ace in the exhibit and convention industry next year. SM City Davao, as per pres releases, will construct its own IT and Convention Center to be located at the back of its mall. The new building will be a mix-use development as it would also serve as a headquarters for BPOs at the same time.

This upcoming convention center is conveniently located at the heart of it all as it is surrounded by major businesses and establishments such as the SM City Mall, the ECO 4000 Condominium, commercial strips, and the reported soon to be constructed high-end apartelles to be managed by one of the city’s major hoteliers.

What made Davao the Convention Capital Of Mindanao?

Davao is the Convention Capital of Mindanao because it is…..

- the city with the most number of hotel rooms in the island.

- the city with the most number of direct flights and linkages to international and national destinations.

- the city with the most number of exhibit, trade, and convention facilities.

- the most secure and safest city in the island.

- the most number of tourist destinations and sights in the island.

- the most modern and most cosmopolitan area in the island.

- the most visited and most preferred destination in the island.

- the island’s hub of business and tourism.

SnapShots – Davao Nights

Downtown Davao | pics courtesy of Junax

Davao’s Pryce Business Park | pics courtesy of Junax

To have a virtual tour around Metro Davao, you may visit http://majesticdavao.50webs.com or http://dabaw.50webs.com for the other cities within Davao.

Snapshots – Davao International Airport

Here are some pics of Davao International Airport officially known as the Francisco Bangoy International Airport. This is Mindanao’s busiest airport and the only international airport in Mindanao serving actual international flights in a regular basis. Here are some snapshots from fellow Dabawenyo netizens:

by Byrdd from flickr

by APL_5 from flickr

 

by Strat_master2000 from flickr

 
by Strat_master2000 from flickr

 

 

BIMP- Eaga Investment Conference 2007

from www.bimp-icon.ph

Anchored on the BIMP-EAGA Development Roadmap 2006-2010, the BIMP Investment Conference(BIMP-iCon) is one of the highlights of the forthcoming Senior Officials and Ministers’ Meeting this 24-26 October 2007.

The BIMP-EAGA Business Council (BEBC) spearheads the conduct of the BIMP iCon and is ably suppported by the focal organization in the Philippines, the Mindanao Business Council (MinBC), the Development Partners and the Governments of the member countries.

• Natural Resource Development
• Tourism Development
• Transportation, Infrastructure and Communication
• Local Growth Areas Competitiveness Enhancement and SME Development
• Public-Private-Partnership in Project Implementation

• Improve trade, investments and tourism in the region
• Address gaps which member countries cannot solve alone, and
• Forge strategic alliances, joint venture arrangements and other forms of cooperation

• Generation of investment proposals for business matching
• Generation of project ideas for technical assistance by Development Partners
• One-on-One Business Matching Session
• Investment Exhibits

Marco Polo Hotel-Davao. Located in Davao City, one of the fast-growing cities in Mindanao. The city is cited by Asiaweek Magazine as one of the 20 Most Livable Cities in Asia and by the Asian Institute of Management (AIM) as among the top 5 Most Competitive Metropolitan Cities in the Philippines. It offers an unlimited spectrum of business oportunities just waiting to be tapped.

Updates – Sutherland Davao!

Contrary to news reports – Sutherland’s plan to expand in Davao will push through with an initial seat count of 100 only. There were reports few weeks ago that the company retracted their plan to put up a facility in the city. However, the said report was biased as the local tv networks were unable to get the side of Sutherland.

MICT 2007 – Programme Highlights

from www.mict2007.com

The 6th MICT Congress and 1st BIMP-EAGA ICT Conferencence will bring about the various movers and shakers of the ICT industry in Mindanao, the Philippines, and its East ASEAN neighbors. We have invited acknowledged expert practitioners, policy makers, and business executives to share their knowledge and expertise. The two day conference highlights a plenary session on the first day and breakout sessions on the second day. Various topics of interest across a broad range of ICT trends, policies, and issues will be covered. Among the general topics to be discussed are:

ICT Beyond Borders: A BIMP-EAGA Perspective

In the spirit of regional cooperation, each member country shall present their country’s vision, experiences, development model, strengths, limitations and suggested areas for collaborative efforts particularly on ICT development in the BIMP-EAGA.

Global Outsourcing Outlook

In the wake of tremendous revenue opportunities, this session shall allow us a closer look at the drivers of the global outsourcing phenomenon. How is the Philippines perceived as an outsourcing destination?

Developing a BIMP-EAGA ICT Network

A seamless and reliable information infrastructure in the BIMP-EAGA that links the sub-region to the rest of the world is required for ICT-related investments and opportunities to thrive. How can we make it happen?

Enhancing Mindanao’s Human Capital for Global Outsourcing Opportunities

A hihgly skilled and competitive workforce remains paramount in achieving global competitiveness in the ICT industry. Strong educational institutions and the need to further strengthen linkages with industry are also important. How will Mindanao respond to the rising demands of IT-enabled services (ITES) in terms of enhancing human resource development?

Philippines eServices Advantage

A showcase of Mindanao ICT Hubs and other ICT Hubs in the country investing in the Regions

Mindanao success stories on ICT

Listen to homegrown talents and their stories of success.

Mindanao ICT Congress 2007

This year’s Mindanao ICT Congress will be once again held in Davao City. The chosen theme for this year’s summit is “ICT Beyond Borders” which effectively captures the increasing role of ICT in effective and borderless trade and cultural exchanges. This year’s edition of MICT Congress is different compared in the past as it will incorporate and will conduct the very first BIMP Eaga Investment Conference (back to back with the ICT Summit).  Also, unlike the previous years, this year’s Mindanao ICT Congress (for the very first time) would also include the participation of other ICT players from Brunei, Indonesia, and Malayasia or countries and cities within the East Asian Growth Area. Davao, as the host, will be bringing this year’s Mindanao ICT Congress to the global arena.

Mindanao culinary fest opens at NCCC

By Joy Romares-Sevilla
Sunstar Davao / October 2007 

THE 7th Mindanao Culinary Festival, being held back-to-back with the 4th International Hotel and Restaurant and Home Expo, opened Friday at the Convention Center of the NCCC Mall of Davao.

The three-day event, which carries the theme: “Flavors and Spices of Mindanao,” gathered professional chefs, students, government officials, and other experts on food and beverages.

Davao Tourism Association (Data) president Angel Puentespina said this year’s event features the mango pavilion of the Davao Region Mango Contractors Association Inc. (Daremca).

“This is the first time that we will have the mango pavilion. It is a special feature of the event, ngayon lang nagkaroon ng mango pavilion maybe because the mango industry realized there’s a need to promote mango not just as a fruit and commodity, but as a food,” Puentespina said.

Puentespina also said participants in this year’s culinary festival increased with the participation of more schools from as far as General Santos City and Kabacan.

“There is a reduction in the number of participants from the professionals, but there’s a big increase in the number of students who are participating in he festival. The number of students now, I can say is even higher than the total number of participants last year,” Puentespina said.

He said Data sees a long-term effect with the staging of the culinary festival.

“Through this event, we can somehow lead the attention of our people to something which is near to everybody’s stomach. This time, this is not about politics, and natural resources, we can show na maraming pwedeng ipagmayabang ang Davao at ang Mindanao in terms of food,” he said.

Puentespina described the event as a venue where people can enhance their skills and learn, thus indirectly creating a more competitive food service and building Davao as a big tourism destination.

The 7th Mindanao Culinary Festival is the biggest and the most prestigious culinary event in Mindanao. It is a project by the Davao Tourism Association and was organized by the Konkordans, a destination and management company in Davao City.

The event offers free cooking and baking demos, free seminar and lectures, and free food sampling and taste tests. It runs until October 7.