Agusan del Sur Province
is a landlocked province of the Philippines located in the Caraga region in Mindanao. Its capital is Prosperidad and borders, from the north clockwise, Agusan del Norte, Surigao del Sur, Davao Oriental, Compostela Valley, Davao del Norte, Bukidnon, and Misamis Oriental.

BRIEF PROFILE
Capital:	Prosperidad
Land Area:	9,989.52 km²
Population:	609,447 (2007)
Spoken Languages:	Cebuano, Tagalog

The Land_______________________________

Agusan del Sur is an elongated basin formation with mountain ranges in the eastern and western sides forming a valley, which occupies the central longitudinal section of the land. The Agusan River, which flows from Compostela Valley in the south towards Agusan del Norte in the north, runs almost in the middle of the valley and empties at Butuan Bay. The river has twelve tributaries: Wawa, Gibong and Simulao Rivers in the eastern side and Ojot, Pusilao, Kasilayan, Libang, Maasam, Adgawan, Cawayan, Umayam and Ihaon Rivers in the western side. These tributaries are fed by streams and creeks. The southern half of the province from the municipality of Veruela is an area filled with swamps and lakes, the biggest of which is Talacogon Lake.

A Brief History___________________________

The Agusan Valley was settled by a variety of cultural communities like the Manobos, Mamanwas and Higaonons. Archeological excavations in the lower Agusan valley plains have uncovered evidence of strong relationships between the region and the Southeast Asian states. A golden image of Javan-Indian design unearthed in the 1920s and molten jars uncovered in Prosperidad are indications that the region had commercial and cultural ties with the coast.

The People______________________________

The dominant religion is Roman Catholicism (79% of the population). Other major religions include the Seventh-day Adventist Church, Aglipay, Iglesia ni Cristo, United Pentecostal Church, Born Again and the United Church of Christ in the Philippines.

Five tribal groups are found in the province: Aeta, Mamanwa, Bagobo, Higaonon, and Manobo. The Manobos live along the national highway and river towns towards the boundary with the Compostela Valley. The Higaonons live mostly on the western side of Agusan River, generally in Esperanza towards the boundary with Bukidnon.

The Agusan del Sur population is predominantly composed of immigrants from the Visayas. Intermarriages between immigrants and natives have pulled down the percentage of the lumad stock.

Economy________________________________

Human resources

Agusan del Sur has a labor force of 287,000 people, mostly in the agriculture and forestry sector. Several colleges, including a university, add to a well educated, highly trainable, English-speaking workforce. The province also keeps abreast of technological developments elsewhere, with some of these educational establishment offering skills development courses in Information Technology.

Agriculture

Rice occupies the largest cultivated area, with 243.85 square kilometres of irrigated area with a yield of 410 t/km², and rainfed rice with an area of about 165.73 km² with a yield of 300 t/km². The province's rice production has the estimated capacity to feed 1,072,456 people—far more than the provinces population. Ironically, rice insufficiency persists, especially in the upland and hard to reach barangays.

Corn plantations cover 255.25 km² for both white and yellow corn with a total production of 55,767 t in 2000 with surplus corn grits of 31,106 MT enough to feed more than 2 million people, four times greater than the province's population.

Banana is another abundant crop covering an area of 127.45 km² and could be seen everywhere but not in conventional plantation form. Banana chips are also processed in the province.

Oil palm plantation covers 118 km². The plantation is a Malaysian-Filipino joint venture, with agrarian reform beneficiaries as land owners. Crude oil is processed in the sites of Rosario, and Trento.

Coconut trees are widespread in the province, covering 393.36 km².

Poultry and Livestock

Despite of the government's efforts to increase poultry and livestock production, deficits in meat supply persist. Processed poultry and beef are imported from Davao City and Cagayan de Oro City.

Fish

Agusan del Sur is highly dependent on Surigao del Sur and other provinces for the supply of marine products. However, the province has abundant supply of fresh water fish like mudfish, catfish and tilapia.