Kabugao

Kabugao, officially the Municipality of Kabugao (Ili ti Kabugao; Bayan ng Kabugao), is a 1st class municipality and de jure capital of the province of Apayao, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 16,215 people.

Kabugao is 606 km from Manila.

History
On July 12, 1915, Governor General Francis Burton Harrison issued Executive Order No. 45, transferring the capital of then sub-province of Apayao from Tauit to Kabugao, to be effective on August 1.

Kabugao was occupied for a year by the Japanese during the Second World War. It was captured in December 1942, after the USAFIP NL retreated from the town.

Cityhood
In the 19th Congress of the Philippines, house bills were filed by various representatives which seek to automatically convert Kabugao and other capital towns of provinces with no current component cities, independent component cities, or highly urbanized cities into cities.

Geography
According to the Philippine Statistics Authority, the municipality has a land area of 935.12 km2 constituting NaN% of the 4,413.35 km2 total area of Apayao.

Barangays
Kabugao is politically subdivided into 21 barangays. Each barangay consists of puroks and some have sitios.

Demographics
In the 2020 census, Kabugao had a population of 16,215. The population density was undefined PD/km2.

Local government
Kabugao, belonging to the lone congressional district of the province of Apayao, is governed by a mayor designated as its local chief executive and by a municipal council as its legislative body in accordance with the Local Government Code. The mayor, vice mayor, and the councilors are elected directly by the people through an election which is being held every three years.

Education
In 1948, Rev. Louis Saunders of an evangelical Protestant sect, The Disciples of Christ, opened the Apayao Christian Academy, Kabugao's first secondary school. In 1950, amidst rivalry among churches, the Catholics started its own secondary school, Our Blessed Lady of Lourdes.

Dibagat


Dibagat is inhabited by the Isnag and the Ilocano. There is a small grass airstrip built by SIL in 1985. Dibagat is accessible only by canoe or by specialized aircraft.