Cagwait, officially the Municipality of Cagwait ( Surigaonon: ''Lungsod nan Cagwait''; tl, Bayan ng Cagwait), is a 4th class

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the ...

in the

province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman ''provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions out ...

Surigao del Sur Surigao del Sur ( Surigaonon: ''Probinsya nan Surigao del Sur''; ceb, Habagatang Surigao; tl, Timog Surigao), officially the Province of Surigao del Sur, is a province in the Philippines located in the Caraga region in Mindanao. Its capital is T ...

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 21,747 people.

Geography

Cagwait is politically subdivided into 11

barangay A barangay (; abbreviated as Brgy. or Bgy.), historically referred to as barrio (abbreviated as Bo.), is the smallest administrative division in the Philippines and is the native Filipino term for a village, district, or ward. In metropolita ...

s. Cagwait is about southeast of

Tandag Tandag, officially the City of Tandag ( Tandaganon/ Surigaonon: ''Siyudad nan Tandag''; Cebuano: ''Dakbayan sa Tandag''; fil, Lungsod ng Tandag), is a 5th class component city and capital of the province of Surigao del Sur, Philippines. Accor ...

, the capital town of Surigao del Sur. It is bounded by the towns of Bayabas on the north, Marihatag on the south, the Diwata mountains on the west and the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has a total land area of .

Barangays

*Aras-asan *Bacolod *Bitaugan East *Bitaugan West *La Purisima (Palhe) *Lactudan *Mat-e *Poblacion *Tawagan *Tubo-tubo *Unidad

Climate

Cagwait has a

tropical rainforest climate A tropical rainforest climate, humid tropical climate or equatorial climate is a tropical climate sub-type usually found within 10 to 15 degrees latitude of the equator. There are some other areas at higher latitudes, such as the coast of southe ...

(Af) with heavy to very heavy rainfall year-round and with extremely heavy rainfall in January.

Demographics

Economy

Cagwait has an all-weather port at Barangay Bitaugan West (named Aras-asan Port by the Philippine Ports Authority) secured by the natural protection of Arangasa Islands. It has also an abandoned aerodrome made and used by the private planes of Aras-asan Timber Company, Inc. (ARTIMCO) during its peak of timber operation in the late 1970s. Barangay Poblacion is the seat of governance, while the center of trade of the municipality is in Barangay Aras-asan. It houses three rural banks, two pawnshops, three bakeshops, a radio station, a public terminal and public market. Telecommunication is on par with other neighboring municipalities using cell phones, and Internet via GPRS, and cable television are available. There are also good tourist inns, beach resorts and homestay (bread and breakfast). Motorized tricycles, jeepneys, and buses ply its roads and concrete highways. Cagwait was the home of the now defunct company ARTIMCO, Inc., one of the largest suppliers of timber in the country. Its land holdings became a sanctuary of the Philippine Eagle. Its land holdings became a sanctuary of the Philippine Eagle which was discovered by Charles Lindbergh during his wildlife expedition. He also discovered the beautiful white-sand beach cove of Cagwait which he described as similar to

Waikiki Beach Waikiki (; haw, Waikīkī; ; also known as Waikiki Beach) is a neighborhood of Honolulu on the south shore of the island of Oahu in the U.S. state of Hawaii. Waikiki is most famous for Waikiki Beach, which is one of six beaches in the district ...

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...

. Cagwait beach is the venue for the popular annual Kaliguan festival. Normally held towards the end of June, the festival is held over three days. A temporary stage is constructed on the beach and features music and a beauty pageant known as Perlas Ng Kaliguan. The most recent festival held in June 2019 was the 23rd annual Kaliguan festival.

Notable personalities

*Elmar Sillador – 1992

Philippine National Police Medal of Valor The Philippine National Police Medal of Valor ( Filipino: ''Medalya ng Kagitingan''), also called the PNP Medal of Valor is the Philippine National Police's highest honor awarded for "a deed of personal bravery and self-sacrifice above and beyo ...

recipient

References

External links

Cagwait Profile at PhilAtlas.com

Cagwait Profile at the DTI Cities and Municipalities Competitive Index
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Philippine Standard Geographic Code The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

br>Philippine Census InformationLocal Governance Performance Management SystemCagwait Community LGU
{{Authority control Municipalities of Surigao del Sur