Iloilo eyes bigger events hub as ICON stays booked

By Mariela Angella Oladive

ILOILO CITY — The Iloilo Provincial Government is seeking financial support from the Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority (TIEZA) for a convention and events facility envisioned to strengthen the province’s position as a hub for meetings, incentives, conferences, and exhibitions (MICE).

Iloilo Gov. Arthur Defensor Jr. met with TIEZA Chief Operating Officer Mark Lapid on Tuesday, July 28, to present the proposed project, which will serve as a key component of the Iloilo Smart Green Government Center in the municipality of Santa Barbara.

The proposed facility will be built on a 6.3-hectare provincial property in Barangays Bolong Oeste and Inangayan, near the Iloilo International Airport in Cabatuan, the region’s main air gateway.

Once completed, the venue is expected to host national and international conventions, conferences, exhibitions, and other large-scale events, further expanding Iloilo’s capacity to attract business and tourism activities.

The convention center forms part of the province’s flagship Smart Green Government Center, which is designed to integrate sustainable infrastructure, smart technology, and modern government services.

The master plan also includes an eco-park, a training center, sports and recreation facilities with a stadium, an integrated emergency response station, and a commercial area.

The provincial government has been assembling funding for the complex from several sources. Last year, it sought PHP 500 million from the Office of the Special Assistant to the President, then headed by Antonio Lagdameo Jr., to help finance the Smart Green Government Center.

Former Sen. Ramon “Bong” Revilla Jr. also pledged PHP 100 million for the project.

The Department of Public Works and Highways Region 6 has separately reported progress on phase one of the multipurpose building, which was allocated PHP 100 million under the 2024 General Appropriations Act.

Joining Defensor during the meeting with Lapid were Provincial Tourism Officer Aulynn Yue Sin, Acting Provincial Engineer Jeb Escarilla, Acting Provincial Planning and Development Office head Mary Rose Matucan, Public Information and Community Affairs Office chief Jose Nereo Lujan, and Head Executive Assistant to the Governor Ruel Von Superio.

TIEZA is an attached agency of the Department of Tourism mandated to develop and manage tourism infrastructure projects and provide funding support for tourism-related initiatives.

The agency already has a substantial footprint in the province. It contributed PHP 200 million toward the construction of the roughly PHP 700-million Iloilo Convention Center, the Mandurriao landmark that opened in 2015 and that TIEZA continues to manage.

Defensor has argued for years that the existing venue is no longer sufficient. In a February 2024 press conference, he said the Iloilo Convention Center was fully booked and welcomed a proposal for a larger facility, saying the province had one venue but needed another

Demand has since tightened further. The convention center, now branded ICON, hosted more than 150 events in 2025, and as of January 2026 its calendar was fully booked with a waitlist stretching up to a year.

TIEZA in January signed a memorandum of agreement with Iloilo City covering a PHP 17.6-million grant for the city’s business events sector, to be released over five years, alongside a PHP 150-million commitment for the redevelopment of the Molo, La Paz, and Jaro plazas.

Provincial officials expect the proposed convention facility to strengthen Iloilo’s competitiveness in the MICE sector while complementing the province’s broader economic development and tourism strategies.