Sawata, Davao del Norte

Located in Davao del Norte, Sawata shares its borders with the municipalities of Kapalong and Asuncion. Additionally, it also borders the province of Davao de Oro, specifically the municipality of Laak.

Poverty incidence of Sawata

Source: Philippine Statistics Authority^{[20][21][22][23][24][25]}

Sawata's main source of economy is agriculture;^[26] as cacao is its main plant.^[27] Its main product is sikwate (Visayan term for chocolate drink) which is made from tablea.^[26][28] Hence, the municipality is known as the "Chocolate Hub" of Davao del Norte;^[27][28] with Sikwate Festival being held in October of every year.^[26]

Sawata, among other areas, is reportedly the largest contributor of cacao beans in Davao Region with 4,000-hectare cacao farms.^[28] These make up an industry that, by 2006, yielded an estimated 3,600 metric tons of cacao beans per hectare annually.^[27] In 2012, more than half of farms were destroyed by super typhoon Pablo, causing sudden decline of tablea production.^[28] In the municipality's first founding anniversary, the largest tablea with the diameter of 2.5 meters and weighing 500 kilograms, was featured.^[27]

Sikwate is produced mainly by the Chocolate de San Isidro (CSI), a private entity.^[26] CSI has been making tablea since it started in 2009. In 2016, production of tablea began to increase through mechanized production. As of 2018, 120 kilograms of tablea were being produced daily; and up to 3 tons were being shipped monthly to other parts of the country.^[28] Likewise, sikwate is being exported.^[26]

Moreover, despite being equipped with the basic market facilities, Sawata's proximity from the provincial center makes the development still ongoing.^[26]

Sawata is known mainly for caves.^[27] Tourism destinations include the Cugsing and Kabyawan caves and Tugtugan Falls in Barangay Dacudao; as well as Maltag Falls at Datu Balong.^[26]