Philippines

• tropical marine;
• northeast monsoon (November to April);
• southwest monsoon (May to October)

agricultural land:

42.7% (2023 est.)

arable land:

18.7% (2023 est.)

permanent crops:

18.9% (2023 est.)

permanent pasture:

5% (2023 est.)

forest:

24.7% (2023 est.)

other:

32.7% (2023 est.)

• population concentrated in areas with good farmland;
• highest concentrations are northwest and south-central Luzon, the southeastern extension of Luzon, and the islands of the Visayan Sea, particularly Cebu and Negros;
• Manila is home to one eighth of the national population

• astride typhoon belt, usually affected by several cyclonic storms each year;
• landslides;
• active volcanoes;
• destructive earthquakes;
• tsunamis

volcanism:

• significant volcanic activity;
• Taal (311 m) has been deemed a Decade Volcano by the International Association of Volcanology and Chemistry of the Earth's Interior, worthy of study due to its explosive history and close proximity to human populations;
• Mayon (2,462 m), the country's most active volcano, erupted in 2009 and forced over 33,000 to be evacuated;
• other historically active volcanoes include
  • Biliran,
  • Babuyan Claro,
  • Bulusan,
  • Camiguin,
  • Camiguin de Babuyanes,
  • Didicas,
  • Iraya,
  • Jolo,
  • Kanlaon,
  • Makaturing,
  • Musuan,
  • Parker,
  • Pinatubo,
  • and Ragang
  ;
• see note 2 under "Geography - note"

noun:

Filipino(s)

adjective:

Philippine

total:

27.1 years (2025 est.)

male:

25.1 years

female:

26.3 years

• population concentrated in areas with good farmland;
• highest concentrations are northwest and south-central Luzon, the southeastern extension of Luzon, and the islands of the Visayan Sea, particularly Cebu and Negros;
• Manila is home to one eighth of the national population

at birth:

1.05 male(s)/female

0-14 years:

1.04 male(s)/female

15-64 years:

1.02 male(s)/female

65 years and over:

0.66 male(s)/female

total population:

1 male(s)/female (2024 est.)

total:

18.5 deaths/1,000 live births (2025 est.)

male:

24.4 deaths/1,000 live births

female:

19.6 deaths/1,000 live births

total population:

70.8 years (2024 est.)

male:

67.3 years

female:

74.5 years

total:

4.85 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

beer:

1.47 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

wine:

0.03 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

spirits:

3.34 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

other alcohols:

0.01 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

total:

19.2% (2025 est.)

male:

34.4% (2025 est.)

female:

3.7% (2025 est.)

women married by age 15:

1.5% (2022)

women married by age 18:

9.4% (2022)

total population:

98.5% (2020 est.)

male:

98.4% (2020 est.)

female:

97% (2022 est.)

• deforestation, especially in watershed areas;
• illegal mining and logging;
• soil erosion;
• air and water pollution in major urban centers;
• coral reef degradation;
• increasing pollution of coastal mangrove swamps;
• coastal erosion;
• dynamite fishing;
• wildlife extinction

• tropical marine;
• northeast monsoon (November to April);
• southwest monsoon (May to October)

agricultural land:

42.7% (2023 est.)

arable land:

18.7% (2023 est.)

permanent crops:

18.9% (2023 est.)

permanent pasture:

5% (2023 est.)

forest:

24.7% (2023 est.)

other:

32.7% (2023 est.)

urban population:

48.3% of total population (2023)

rate of urbanization:

2.04% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

energy:

230.7 kt (2022-2024 est.)

agriculture:

1,662.2 kt (2019-2021 est.)

waste:

452.7 kt (2019-2021 est.)

other:

39.1 kt (2019-2021 est.)

municipal solid waste generated annually:

14.632 million tons (2024 est.)

percent of municipal solid waste recycled:

49.9% (2022 est.)

municipal:

9.498 billion cubic meters (2022)

industrial:

13.602 billion cubic meters (2022)

agricultural:

67.937 billion cubic meters (2022)

total global geoparks and regional networks:

1

global geoparks and regional networks:

Bohol Island (2023)

conventional long form:

Republic of the Philippines

conventional short form:

Philippines

local long form:

Republika ng Pilipinas

local short form:

Pilipinas

etymology:

named in honor of King PHILLIP II of Spain by Spanish explorer Ruy LOPEZ de VILLALOBOS, who visited the islands in 1543

name:

Manila

geographic coordinates:

14 36 N, 120 58 E

time difference:

UTC+8 (13 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology:

derives from the Tagalog word may , meaning "there is," and nila , the local name for a shrub in the indigo family

history:

several previous; latest ratified 2 February 1987, effective 11 February 1987

amendment process:

• proposed by Congress if supported by three fourths of the membership, by a constitutional convention called by Congress, or by public petition;
• passage by either of the three proposal methods requires a majority vote in a national referendum

citizenship by birth:

no

citizenship by descent only:

at least one parent must be a citizen of the Philippines

dual citizenship recognized:

no

residency requirement for naturalization:

10 years

legislature name:

Congress (Kongreso)

legislative structure:

bicameral

chamber name:

Senate (Senado)

number of seats:

24 (all directly elected)

electoral system:

plurality/majority

scope of elections:

partial renewal

term in office:

6 years

most recent election date:

5/12/2025

parties elected and seats per party:

• Nationalist People's Coalition (NPC) (2);
• Nacionalista Party (NP) (3);
• Partido Demokratiko Pilipino-Laban (PDP-Laban) (2);
• Lakas- CMD party (1);
• Katipunan ng Nagkakaisang Pilipino (KANP) (1);
• Liberal Party (1);
• Independents (2)

percentage of women in chamber:

20.8%

expected date of next election:

May 2028

highest court(s):

Supreme Court (consists of a chief justice and 14 associate justices)

judge selection and term of office:

justices are appointed by the president on the recommendation of the Judicial and Bar Council, a constitutionally created, 6-member body that recommends Supreme Court nominees; justices serve until age 70

subordinate courts:

• Court of Appeals;
• Sandiganbayan (special court for corruption cases of government officials);
• Court of Tax Appeals;
• regional, metropolitan, and municipal trial courts;
• sharia courts

• Democratic Action (Aksyon Demokratiko)
• Alliance for Change (Hugpong ng Pagbabago or HNP)
• Katipunan ng Nagkakaisang Pilipino (KANP)
• Lakas ng EDSA-Christian Muslim Democrats or Lakas-CMD
• Liberal Party or LP
• Nacionalista Party or NP
• Nationalist People's Coalition or NPC
• National Unity Party or NUP
• Partido Demokratiko Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan or PDP-Laban
• Partido Federal ng Pilipinas or PFP

chief of mission:

Ambassador MaryKay Loss CARLSON (since 22 July 2022)

embassy:

1201 Roxas Boulevard, Manila 1000

mailing address:

8600 Manila Place, Washington DC 20521-8600

telephone:

[63] (2) 5301-2000

FAX:

[63] (2) 5301-2017

email address and website:

[email protected]; https://ph.usembassy.gov/

description:

• two equal horizontal bands of blue (top) and red;
• a white equilateral triangle is based on the left side;
• the center of the triangle has a yellow sun with eight rays, each split into smaller rays;
• the triangle's corners each have a small five-pointed yellow star

meaning:

• blue stands for peace and justice, red for courage, and the triangle for equality;
• the rays represent the first eight provinces that sought independence from Spain, and the stars represent the country's three parts:
  • Luzon,
  • Visayas,
  • and Mindanao

history:

the design dates to 1897

note: in wartime, the flag is flown upside-down with the red band at the top

• the coat of arms was adopted on 3 July 1946;
• the three gold stars represent the major island groups of Luzon, the Visayas, and Mindanao;
• the rays of the sun represent the provinces of the Philippines;
• the American eagle and lion of Spain represent the nation's colonial past

title:

"Lupang Hinirang" (Chosen Land)

lyrics/music:

collectively/Julian FELIPE

history:

music adopted 1898 and lyrics adopted 1956; only sung in Tagalog

total World Heritage Sites:

6 (3 cultural, 3 natural)

selected World Heritage Site locales:

• Baroque Churches of the Philippines (c);
• Tubbataha Reefs Natural Park (n);
• Rice Terraces of the Philippine Cordilleras (c);
• Historic Vigan (c);
• Puerto-Princesa Subterranean River National Park (n);
• Mount Hamiguitan Range Wildlife Sanctuary (n)

• growing Southeast Asian economy;
• commercial rebound led by transportation, construction and financial services;
• electronics exports recovering from sector slowdown;
• significant remittances;
• interest rate rises following heightened inflation;
• uncertainties due to increased regional tensions with China

total:

6.6% (2024 est.)

male:

5.6% (2024 est.)

female:

8.3% (2024 est.)

note: % of labor force ages 15-24 seeking employment

on food:

37.3% of household expenditures (2023 est.)

on alcohol and tobacco:

1.9% of household expenditures (2023 est.)

lowest 10%:

2.9% (2023 est.)

highest 10%:

31.6% (2023 est.)

note: % share of income accruing to lowest and highest 10% of population

production:

14.457 million metric tons (2023 est.)

consumption:

42.859 million metric tons (2023 est.)

exports:

8.151 million metric tons (2023 est.)

imports:

36.542 million metric tons (2023 est.)

proven reserves:

361 million metric tons (2023 est.)

total petroleum production:

10,000 bbl/day (2023 est.)

refined petroleum consumption:

457,000 bbl/day (2023 est.)

crude oil estimated reserves:

138.5 million barrels (2021 est.)

production:

2.325 billion cubic meters (2023 est.)

consumption:

3.12 billion cubic meters (2023 est.)

imports:

794.289 million cubic meters (2023 est.)

proven reserves:

98.543 billion cubic meters (2021 est.)

• multiple national private TV and radio networks;
• multi-channel satellite and cable TV systems available;
• more than 400 TV stations;
• about 1,500 cable TV providers with more than 2 million subscribers;
• over 1,400 radio stations;
• was scheduled to move to digital by the end of 2023 (2019)

total:

77 km (2017)

standard gauge:

49 km (2017) 1.435-m gauge

narrow gauge:

28 km (2017) 1.067-m gauge

total ports:

70 (2024)

large:

2

medium:

4

small:

8

very small:

56

ports with oil terminals:

22

key ports:

Batangas City, Cagayan de Oro, Cebu, Manila, San Fernando Harbor, Subic Bay