Santo Niño, Cagayan

Santo Niño, officially the Municipality of Santo Niño (Ibanag: Ili nat Santo Niño; Ilocano: Ili ti Santo Niño; Tagalog: Bayan ng Santo Niño), formerly known as Faire, is a municipality in the province of Cagayan, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 28,537 people.^[3]

Santo Niño Faire
Municipality
Municipality of Santo Niño
Flag
Map of Cagayan with Santo Niño highlighted
OpenStreetMap
Santo Niño Location within the Philippines
Coordinates: 17°53′10″N 121°34′09″E
Country	Philippines
Region	Cagayan Valley
Province	Cagayan
District	2nd district
Barangays	31 (see Barangays)
Government  [1]
• Type	Sangguniang Bayan
• Mayor	Vicente G. Pagurayan
• Vice Mayor	Andrew Vincent R. Pagurayan
• Representative	Samantha Louise V. Alfonso
• Electorate	19,313 voters (2025)
Area [2]
• Total	512.90 km2 (198.03 sq mi)
Elevation	111 m (364 ft)
Highest elevation	721 m (2,365 ft)
Lowest elevation	3 m (10 ft)
Population  (2020 census)[3]
• Total	28,537
• Density	56/km2 (140/sq mi)
• Households	7,174
Economy
• Income class	2nd municipal income class
• Poverty incidence	15.55 % (2021)[4]
• Revenue	₱ 309.9 million (2022)
• Assets	₱ 662.2 million (2022)
• Expenditure	₱ 187.4 million (2022)
• Liabilities	₱ 138 million (2022)
Service provider
• Electricity	Cagayan 1 Electric Cooperative (CAGELCO 1)
Time zone	UTC+8 (PST)
ZIP code	3525
PSGC	0201526000
IDD : area code	+63 (0)78
Native languages	Ibanag Ilocano Itawis Tagalog

History

The town, originally known as Cabarungan, was officially established as the town of Santo Niño by virtue of a Spanish Royal Decree dated November 27, 1897. In 1914, it was renamed Faire in honor of Don Manuel Faire, a prominent Ilocano immigrant who played a key role in advocating for the town's formal creation. The town later reverted to its original name in subsequent years.^[5]

Geography

Santo Niño is situated 52.57 kilometres (32.67 mi) from the provincial capital Tuguegarao, and 520.47 kilometres (323.41 mi) from the country's capital city of Manila.

Barangays

Santo Niño is politically subdivided into 31 barangays. Each barangay consists of puroks while some have sitios.

• Abariongan Ruar
• Abariongan Uneg
• Balagan
• Balanni
• Cabayo
• Calapangan
• Calassitan
• Campo
• Centro Norte (Poblacion)
• Centro Sur (Poblacion)
• Dungao
• Lattac
• Lipatan
• Lubo
• Mabitbitnong
• Mapitac
• Masical
• Matalao
• Nag-uma (Nagbayugan)
• Namuccayan
• Niug Norte
• Niug Sur
• Palusao
• San Manuel
• San Roque
• Santa Felicitas
• Santa Maria
• Sidiran
• Tabang
• Tamucco
• Virginia

Climate

Climate data for Santo Niño, Cagayan
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Mean daily maximum °C (°F)	25 (77)	27 (81)	29 (84)	32 (90)	32 (90)	31 (88)	31 (88)	31 (88)	30 (86)	29 (84)	27 (81)	25 (77)	29 (85)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F)	20 (68)	21 (70)	22 (72)	23 (73)	24 (75)	25 (77)	25 (77)	25 (77)	24 (75)	23 (73)	23 (73)	21 (70)	23 (73)
Average precipitation mm (inches)	133 (5.2)	87 (3.4)	68 (2.7)	44 (1.7)	127 (5.0)	134 (5.3)	160 (6.3)	162 (6.4)	134 (5.3)	192 (7.6)	194 (7.6)	260 (10.2)	1,695 (66.7)
Average rainy days	18.1	13.3	13.3	11.8	19.7	20.9	22.8	22.8	20.3	16.6	18.4	21.7	219.7
Source: Meteoblue[6]

Demographics

Population census of Santo Niño

Year Pop. ±% p.a. 1903 4,069 —     1918 5,421 +1.93% 1939 8,877 +2.38% 1948 9,947 +1.27% 1960 13,981 +2.88% 1970 16,923 +1.93% 1975 18,638 +1.95% 1980 19,493 +0.90%	Year Pop. ±% p.a. 1990 18,608 −0.46% 1995 21,151 +2.43% 2000 22,752 +1.58% 2007 25,688 +1.69% 2010 26,126 +0.62% 2015 27,219 +0.78% 2020 28,537 +0.93%
Source: Philippine Statistics Authority[7][8][9][10]

In the 2020 census, the population of Santo Niño, Cagayan, was 28,537 people,^[3] with a density of 56 inhabitants per square kilometre or 150 inhabitants per square mile.

Economy

Poverty incidence of Santo Niño

10 20 30 40 50 60 2000 54.07 2003 37.27 2006 28.00 2009 26.32 2012 22.08 2015 19.74 2018 16.74 2021 15.55 Source: Philippine Statistics Authority[11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18]

Government

Local government

Main article: Sangguniang Bayan

Santo Niño is part of the second legislative district of the province of Cagayan. It 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 municipal councilors are elected directly by the people through an election held every three years.

Elected officials

Members of the Municipal Council
(2019–2022)^[19]

Position	Name
Congressman	Samantha Louise V. Alfonso
Mayor	Vicente G. Pagurayan
Vice-Mayor	Marites E. Cuntapay
Councilors	Eden M. Aquinaldo
	Romeo P. Pecson
	Edgar T. Tulali
	Detilinda C. Carag
	Jose C. Carodan
	Divinia L. Baltazar
	Arnold D. Fidel
	Ismael M. Macasaddu

Education

The Schools Division of Cagayan governs the town's public education system.^[20] The division office is a field office of the DepEd in Cagayan Valley region.^[21] The Sto. Niño Schools District Office governs the public and private elementary and high schools throughout the municipality.^[22]

Primary and elementary schools

• Abariongan Ruar Elementary School
• Abariongan Uneg Elementary School
• Balagan Elementary School
• Balanni Elementary School
• Cabayo Primary School
• Calapangan Elementary School
• Calassitan Elementary School
• Campo Elementary School
• Dungao Integrated School (Elementary)
• Lagum Elementary School
• Lattac Elementary School
• Lipatan Integrated School (Elementary)
• Lubo Elementary School
• Mabitbitnong Primary School
• Mapitac Primary School
• Matalao Elementary School
• Nag-Uma Elementary School
• Namuccayan Integrated School (Elementary)
• Niug Elementary School
• Niug Norte Elementary School
• Palusao Elementary School
• San Manuel Elementary School
• Sidiran Elementary School
• Sta. Felicitas Elementary School
• Sta. Maria Elementary School
• Sto. Nino Central Elementary School
• Tabang Elementary School
• Tamucco Elementary School
• Virginia Elementary School

Secondary schools

• Abariongan National High School
• Dungao Integrated School
• Lipatan Integrated School
• Lubo National High School
• Namuccayan Integrated School
• Sto. Nino National High School
• Veridiano Academy Foundation

See also

• List of renamed cities and municipalities in the Philippines