The island of Panay is divided into five provinces in the central Philippines. It is surrounded by water and has coastal lowlands as well as rugged interior hills and mountains, supporting diverse marine and inland wildlife as well as various agricultural products. Panay is a major producer of rice and seaweed in the Philippines. Its agricultural areas grow crops like coconut, mango, pineapple, and the famous muscovado sugar of Panay. Each province on Panay has its own traditional arts and crafts, such as woven fibers and shells from Aklan and Capiz that are used for lanterns, windows and decorations.

1. Panay Island
The island of Panay belongs to the Western Visayas Region in central Philippines and
is divided into five provinces, namely Aklan, Antique, Capiz and Iloilo and Guimaras. It
is surrounded by various bodies of water and is characterized by relatively wide stretch
of coastal lowlands with rugged hills and mountains on the interiors, making Panay a
heart of diverse marine life, inland fishery and various agricultural products. The island
is also competitively advantageous in the production of seaweed and is being
considered as the second largest rice producing region in the Philippines. Its large
agricultural land area produces coconut, mangoes, pineapples, root crops, vegetables
and the well-known muscovado, the origin of sugar in Panay and the Philippines. Rattan
craft is also a large local industry.
Arts and crafts Aklan- known for weaving cloth made from pinya fibers. Bastos- the first
set of pinya fibers. Linawan- the finer set of pinya fibers. Sangget- cutting instrument
similar to kawit or harabas used for gathering bariw leaves. Kulhadan- simple machine
with blades used for stripping bariw leaves .
Arts and Crafts Antique Forest products include bamboo, rattan, buri, bariw, nito, log,
charcoal, abaca, herbal vines and plants, wild flowers and others. These forest
resources are of undetermined quantity, and are used as raw materials in the
construction industry, furniture and handicraft.

2. Arts and Crafts Capiz is known for the brilliant Capiz shell produced here, it is used in
making windows, lanterns, decorations, vases, etc. The Capiz shell has a luster similar
to mother of pearl shells
Arts and Crafts Patadyong- important industry in Iloilo. -Wrap- around piece of cloth
worn by women features linear and geometric designs. Paghahabol- a term used for
weaving in Badiangan, Iloilo.
Arts and Crafts Gumaras Different towns all over Western Visayas displayed their
cultural heritages through indigenous crafts, native recipes, and others, such as: the
hablon and patadyong of Miag-ao, fishing gears and traps, and butong-butong of
Guimbal, bamboo crafts of Maasin, basket, bag and mat of Patnongon, Antique, nito
and coconut shellcraft of Jordan and Nueva Valencia, Guimaras, linupak of Alimodian,
bingka and barquillos of Molo, bolo and traditional metal art of Badiangan, miniature
boat of Buenavista, Guimaras, and pottery and traditional clay art of Mandurriao.