Datu Montawal

Datu Montawal, officially the Municipality of Datu Montawal (Maguindanaon: Ingud nu Datu Montawal; Iranun: Inged a Datu Montawal; Tagalog: Bayan ng Datu Montawal), is a municipality in the province of Maguindanao del Sur, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 37,314 people.^[4]

Datu Montawal Pagagawan
Municipality
Municipality of Datu Montawal
Freedom Park
Flag Seal
Map of Maguindanao del Sur with Datu Montawal highlighted
OpenStreetMap
Datu Montawal Location within the Philippines
Coordinates: 7°06′N 124°46′E
Country	Philippines
Region	Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao
Province	Maguindanao del Sur
District	Lone district
Founded	July 18, 2000
Named after	Datu Macabangen K. Montawal
Barangays	11 (see Barangays)
Government  [1]
• Type	Sangguniang Bayan
• Mayor	Ohto C. Montawal
• Vice Mayor	Vicman K. Montawal
• Representative	Mohamad P. Paglas Sr.
• Municipal Council	Members Mubarac M. Abubakar Abdila M. Kakim Jasmerudin M. Mangadad Hussain S. Esmael Datu Kautin C. Montawal Jolicies B. Montawal Esmail G. Mindalagat Yussof M. Montawal Jr.
• Electorate	21,472 voters (2025)
Area [2]
• Total	461.10 km2 (178.03 sq mi)
Elevation	14 m (46 ft)
Highest elevation	36 m (118 ft)
Lowest elevation	8 m (26 ft)
Population  (2020 census)
• Total	37,314
• Density	81/km2 (210/sq mi)
• Households	6,019
Economy
• Income class	5th municipal income class
• Poverty incidence	41.75 % (2021)[3]
• Revenue	₱ 188.8 million (2022)
• Assets	₱ 138.9 million (2022)
• Expenditure	₱ 181.6 million (2022)
• Liabilities	₱ 34.32 million (2022)
Service provider
• Electricity	Maguindanao Electric Cooperative (MAGELCO)
Time zone	UTC+8 (PST)
ZIP code	9610
PSGC	1903822000
IDD : area code	+63 (0)64
Native languages	Maguindanao Ilianen Tagalog

The municipality, then known as Pagagawan, was created under Muslim Mindanao Autonomy Act No. 95 on July 18, 2000, carved out of the municipality of Pagalungan.^[5] It was renamed to Datu Montawal under Muslim Mindanao Autonomy Act No. 152 on June 9, 2003.^[6][7]

Republic Act No. 11550 was signed on May 27, 2021. The law stated the creation of Maguindanao del Norte and Maguindanao del Sur, recognized the name of the municipality as Datu Montawal, no longer as Pagagawan^[8] and ceded the municipality to Maguindanao del Sur. The law had won via plebiscite on September 18, 2022.^[9]

Geography

Barangays

Municipal Hall of Datu Montawal

Datu Montawal is politically subdivided into 11 barangays. Each barangay consists of puroks while some have sitios.

• Balatungkayo (Batungkayo)
• Bulit
• Bulod
• Dungguan
• Limbalud
• Maridagao
• Nabundas
• Pagagawan
• Talapas
• Talitay
• Tunggol

Climate

Climate data for Datu Montawal, Maguindanao
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Mean daily maximum °C (°F)	32 (90)	32 (90)	33 (91)	33 (91)	32 (90)	31 (88)	30 (86)	31 (88)	31 (88)	31 (88)	31 (88)	31 (88)	32 (89)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F)	21 (70)	21 (70)	21 (70)	22 (72)	23 (73)	23 (73)	23 (73)	23 (73)	23 (73)	23 (73)	23 (73)	22 (72)	22 (72)
Average precipitation mm (inches)	19 (0.7)	14 (0.6)	15 (0.6)	18 (0.7)	33 (1.3)	42 (1.7)	44 (1.7)	42 (1.7)	30 (1.2)	31 (1.2)	28 (1.1)	17 (0.7)	333 (13.2)
Average rainy days	6.9	5.6	6.9	8.1	15.1	17.5	17.8	18.5	14.9	14.9	12.4	8.0	146.6
Source: Meteoblue (modeled/calculated data, not measured locally)[10]

Demographics

Population census of Datu Montawal

Year	Pop.	±% p.a.
2000	27,010	—
2007	32,995	+2.80%
2010	31,265	−1.94%
2015	34,820	+2.07%
2020	37,314	+1.37%
Source: Philippine Statistics Authority[11][12][13][14]

Economy

Poverty Incidence of Datu Montawal

10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 2000 68.48 2003 52.35 2006 50.70 2009 53.02 2012 76.22 2015 59.40 2018 67.54 2021 41.75 Source: Philippine Statistics Authority[15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22]