Davao City, officially the City of Davao (Cebuano: Dakbayan sa Dabaw, Filipino: Lungsod ng Dabaw), is a highly urbanized city in the island of Mindanao, Philippines. The city has a total land area of 2,443.61 km2 (943.48 sq mi), and has a population of 1,632,991 based on the 2015 census, making it the largest city in the Philippines in terms of land area. The city is also the third-most-populous city in the Philippines after Quezon City and Manila, the most populous city in the country outside Metro Manila and the most populous in Mindanao.It is geographically situated in the province of Davao del Sur and grouped under the province by the Philippine Statistics Authority but the city is governed and administered politically independent from it. The city is divided into three congressional districts, which are subdivided into 11 administrative districts with a total of 182 barangays.
Davao City is the center of Metro Davao, the third most populous metropolitan area in the Philippines (as of 2015 census with a population of 2.5 million, after Metro Manila's 12.8 million and Metro Cebu's 2.8 million). The city serves as the main trade, commerce, and industry hub of Mindanao and the regional center of Davao Region. Davao is home to Mount Apo, the highest mountain in the Philippines. The city is also nicknamed as the "Durian Capital of the Philippines".
Davao attained a high "safety index" according to Numbeo, a crowd-sourced survey website, which the Philippine national media has reported frequently, although the city has the highest murder rate and the second highest rape rate in the country according to national police raw data as of 2015. Rodrigo Duterte, mayor for 22 years, claimed credit for Numbeo's safety ranking, boasting that he killed the criminals. A vigilante group called the Davao Death Squad killed over 1,400 street children and alleged criminals while he was mayor, according to human rights groups.