Pampanga is a province of the Philippines located in the Central Luzon region. Its capital is the City of San Fernando, Pampanga. Pampanga is bordered by the provinces of Bataan and Zambales to the west, Tarlac and Nueva Ecija to the north, and Bulacan to the southeast. Pampanga also lies on the northern shore of Manila Bay.
Political Subdivisions
Pampanga is composed of twenty (20) municipalities and two (2) cities, namely: Angeles City and City of San Fernando. It is subdivided into four political districts: 1st District : Municipalities of Mabalacat and Magalang including Angeles City; 2nd District: Municipalities of Lubao, Guagua, Floridablanca, Porac, Sta. Rita, and Sexmoan; 3rd District: Municipalities of San Fernando, Arayat, Mexico, Bacolor, and Sta. Ana; and the 4th District: Municipalities of Candaba, Apalit, Macabebe, Masantol, Minalin, Sto. Tomas, San Luis, and San Simon.
Language / Dialect
The majority (89.6 percent) of the total household population spoke Kapampangan during early childhod. The remaining 10.4 percent spoke Tagalog (8.1 percent), Ilokano (0.5 percent), Bikol (0.4 percent) and other dialects (1.4 percent).
Economy
Pampanga is taking center stage as the country shifts into industrial high gear. The province has always been a net exporter of food products like rice, sugar, vegetables and fruits as well as poultry, livestock and inland fish products. It is also richly blessed with a highly skilled and highly educated resource pool of manpower, who have a tradition of industrial pursuit especially in the fields of woodcraft, food processing, ceramics, metalworking and decorative crafts. An excellent network of good roads covers the entire province and connects to the main arterial highway to Manila and Olongapo City. An international airport is located within the Clark Special Economic Zone, while other utilities such as power, telecommunications and potable and irrigated water extensively cover the entire province and are readily available for industries and businesses. In spite of the destruction caused by the eruption of Mount Pinatubo in 1991 and the continuous threat of lahar over vast swathes of the province, agriculture remains a viable area of opportunity. With ready and accessible markets capable of absorbing production, shifting to high value crops and agricultural production is promising. Vegetable, fruit and cut flower production are some of the potential fields of development. The province also boasts of a tradition of food preparation and with a good source of raw materials, food processing will thrive within the province.
