Region 6 or Western Visayas is the land of friendly and affabble Ilonggos. It is a beautiful region blessed with many picturesque scenes, vast natural resources, rich cultural heritage and magnificent race.

It is located in Central Philippine between two inter-island bodies of water: the Sibuyan Sea and Visayas Sea. Geographically, the region is defined by grid coordinates 121º 5' West to 123º 2' 30" East longitude and 9º 25' South to 12º 12' 30" North latitude. Western Visayas has a total land area of 20,223 square kilometers which is approximately 6.7% of the total land area of the Philippines. This region is composed of six(6) provinces with Aklan having 1,816.90; Antique - 2,522.00; Capiz - 3,633.20; Iloilo - 4,719.42; Guimaras - 604.40 and Negros Occidental - 7,926.95.

The Panay Island comprises the province of Aklan, Antique, Capiz, and Iloilo. There are eleven(11) cities, 122 municipalities and 4048 barangays in the region. The City of Iloilo is the regional administrative center and the regional center of trade, commerce, industry, education, culture and government. Bacolod City in Negros Occidental is another popular city in the region.

Region 6 is also subdivided in seventeen(17) congressional districts. The provinces of Aklan and Antique are represented by one district each; Capiz with two districts; the cities of Iloilo and Bacolod with one distinct congressional district each; Iloilo province has five(5) districts and Negros Occidental has six(6) districts.

Based on the 01 Sept. 1995 census of population, Western Visayas has a total population of 5,776,938 broken down as follows: Aklan 410,539; Antique 431,713; Capiz 624,469; Guimaras 126,469; Iloilo 1,415,022; Negros Occidental 2,031,841; Iloilo City 334,539 and Bacolod City 402,345.

Rice and corn are the most widely planted food crops in the region, with Iloilo having the largest area devoted to its propagation that is why it is known as the "bread basket of the nation." These two major food crops are produced in surplus in the region and are supplied to other regions. Sugarcane is the most widely planted commercial crop in the region particularly in Negros Occidental which is known as the "sugar bowl of the Philippine." It has the largest area planted with this crop (97% of the country's sugarcane area) and has the highest total sugarcane production which is 89%.

Region 6 is also sufficient in poultry and livestock. As of 1990 production report, poultry and livestock accounted for 42,037 heads of cattle/carabao, 1,172,752 swine, 170,288 goats, 28,321,916 chicken and 5,824,766 heads of ducks.. Likewise, Region 6 is noted for its rich and abundant fish and marine resources. Iloilo ranked second to Navotas in fish production. As of latest report, Region 6 has a total area of 68,031.20 hectares of bangus farm with a total production of 102,046.80 metric ton(mt). Prawn farms has a total area 8,258.80 hectares with a total production of 8,258.80 mt. Marine and or aqua-cultured prawns is one of the biggest dollar earner industry in the region.

There are 3,785 public and private schools in the region as of 1998, 83% of these schools offer elementary level education while the rest offer secondary (14%) and tertiary (3%) levels. Iloilo and Negros Occidental have the biggest number of schools totaling 1,302 and 1,119 respectively. Iloilo has the biggest number of elementary, secondary and tertiary level schools.

Financial institutions in Region 6 recorded a total of 391, of which, 108 are commercial banks, 23 thrift banks, 115 rural banks and non-banks financial institutions. Negros Occidental has the biggest number of these institutions except for rural banks, of which Iloilo has the most number totaling to 35, while Antique has the least with 31 establishments.

Approximately, there are 2,353,245 registered voters in Region 6. Out of this figures, 973,480 or 41.36% are from Negros Occidental, followed by Iloilo province with 781,875 or 33% then by Capiz 261,566 or 11%, Aklan 161,967 or 7%, Antique 164,347 or 6.98% and Guimaras with 10,825 or 0.46%.

Among the popular and notable tourist points of interest are:

Boracay Island	Boracay, Malay, Aklan
Sicogon Resort	Sicogon, Carles, Iloilo
Inampulogan Resort	Nueva Valencia, Guimaras
Paon Beach Resort	Estancia, Iloilo
Mambucal Summer Resort	Murcia, Negros Occidental
Sta. Fe Resort	Bacolod City
Nagarao Beach Resort	Nueva Valencia, Guimaras

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