Marcos designates Tarlac land for new industrial park development

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has set aside a 297,719-square-meter portion of land in Barangay Baculong, Victoria, Tarlac for its Victoria Industrial Park.

Marcos, through Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin, signed Proclamation No. 623 on 4 July but was only released to the public on Sunday, 7 July.

Malacañang issued the proclamation upon the recommendation of the board of directors of the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA), which was based on a detailed feasibility and engineering study.

Special economic zones are designated areas that are either highly developed or have significant potential for development into centers for agriculture, industry, tourism, commerce, banking, investment and finance.

It can include a variety of developments such as Industrial Estates, Export Processing Zones, Free Trade Zones and Tourist/Recreational Centers.

Data from PEZA showed that there are a total of 419 economic zones as of April 2023.

Of this total, 78 are manufacturing economic zones, 297 are information technology parks or centers, 17 are tourism export enterprises, 24 are agro-industrial economic zones, and three are medical tourism parks or centers.

Data from a 2020 census showed that Victoria, a second-class municipality in Tarlac, is home to approximately 63,370 residents.