LAPU-LAPU CITY, April 5 -- Officials broke ground Friday on a 2.9-kilometer boardwalk serving as an esplanade with a view to a vast mangrove plantation where migratory birds have become a tourist attraction in this historical city.

Mayor Junard Chan said the boardwalk connecting Barangay Sabang in Olango island group and the tourism village of Pangan-an is expected to increase domestic and foreign visitors in the area.

"This boardwalk will not only provide easy access for the people during an emergency, but also a potential source of livelihood and employment opportunity for the residents," Chan said in Cebuano during the project launch.

The mayor recalled that residents who had emergencies used to cross the shallow channel even during...