San Vicente, officially the Municipality of San Vicente (), is a 1st class municipality in the province of Palawan, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 33,507 people.
It is located in the north-western side of the main island of Palawan and is from Puerto Princesa City. It occupies a total land area of .
San Vicente's of beachfront, popularly called the Long Beach, is being converted into an emerging tourist destination that will be the beneficiary of government spending on infrastructure. The Long Beach have two rocky cliffs interrupting the continuous expanse of approximately 14.7 kilometers of sugary white sand beach dividing it into three coves. It is the longest white sand beach in the Philippines and is the First Flagship Tourism Enterprise Zone of the Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority (TIEZA). The Long Beach spans to the coastline of four barangays namely Poblacion, New Agutaya, San Isidro and Alimanguan.
History
In 1952, migrants from Manamoc, an island of the Cuyo Archipelago, arrived in a place called Malagnang ( muddy/ maputik) a sitio of Kemdeng, formerly part of Puerto Princesa. The first to arrive were the Dandal brothers (Anastacio, Ricardo, and Lauro), Alberto Radam, and Marcelino Gadiano with their families. After sometime their relatives followed forming a small community which gave rise to the election of Anastascio Dandal as the first Barrio Lieutenant.
The small ethnic group of Agutaynon and Cuyunon increased in number and with the increase disputes emerged particularly in the choice of the town's Patron Saint. The Cuyunon wanted Saint Vincent Ferrer while the choice of Agutaynon was Saint Isidro Labrador. The group decided to resolve the issue by drawing a lot. The name of Saint Vincent Ferrer was drawn thus the name Malagnang was changed to San Vicente.
The Municipality of San Vicente was created on June 21, 1969, by virtue of Republic Act 5821. It officially functioned as distinct municipality on January 1, 1972.
The present Municipality was created out of several barrios from the Municipalities of Taytay and Puerto Princesa (now a highly urbanized city). The barrio of New Agutaya up to the northernmost barrio of Binga used to be part of Taytay while the barrio of San Vicente (Poblacion) down to the southernmost barrio of Caruray were part of Puerto Princesa. The barrio of San Vicente used to be a sitio named Malagnang until it was upgraded into a barrio and renamed by a law in 1959.
Geography
San Vicente is nestled in the north-west of Palawan's mainland, bounded by the Philippine West Sea in the West, the municipality of Taytay in the north, Roxas in the East and City of Puerto Princesa in the Southwest. With a forest area of 82,080.09 hectares and 22 identified islands and islets within its municipal boundaries. San Vicente is located in the north-western side of the main island of Palawan and is 186 kilometers from Puerto Princesa City. It occupies a total land area of 165,797.6525 hectares.
Barangays
San Vicente is politically subdivided into 10 barangays. Each barangay consists of puroks and some have sitios. Alimanguan Binga Caruray New Villa Fria (Kemdeng) New Agutaya New Canipo Port Barton Poblacion (San Vicente) San Isidro Santo Niño
Climate
As with the general climate of the Philippine Archipelago, San Vicente's dry season begins in December, lasting until the month of May while the onset of the wet or rainy season is in June, usually drying up again in November. Northestern winds, the amihan prevail from November to May. Rough coastal waters characterize the season of habagat, or the south-western winds.
Demographics
In the 2020 census, the population of San Vicente, Palawan, was 33,507 people, with a density of .
In the 2010 NSO Census, San Vicente had a total population of 30,919 at a growth rate of 6%. Population increased by 3,500 from 27,065 in 2008 based on CBMS survey within a 2-year gap. The total number of households was 6,460 with average household size of 5 members.
Economy
Fishing and farming are the major economic activities in San Vicente wherein 29.50% and 25.77% respectively are engaged in it. Rice and coconut are the major agricultural crops and fish products are adequate in the municipality.
San Vicente is predominantly fishing and a farming municipality and now gaining recognition as a center of interest for Tourism. San Vicente can offer a diverse range of attractions for adventure and nature enthusiasts. Roads and other infrastructure support facilities are now on its implementation process through the help of the National Government.