New Clark City

Also known as: NCC · Clark Green City · Clark City

Definition

New Clark City (NCC), also known as Clark Green City, is a planned city under development in Capas, Tarlac, Philippines, within the broader Clark Special Economic Zone. Conceived and spearheaded by the Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA), NCC is envisioned as the country’s first smart, green, and resilient metropolis, designed to decongest Metro Manila and serve as a backup seat of government in disasters. It was prominently developed for the 2019 Southeast Asian Games, which used its purpose-built sports facilities; fully built, it is projected to span over 9,000 hectares and house over a million residents.

Identities

Source	Identifier
Wikipedia	New Clark City
Wikidata	Q27547360
DBpedia	dbr:New_Clark_City

Also Known As

NCC
Clark Green City
Clark City

Examples and Analogies

New Clark City is comparable to planned capitals like Putrajaya (Malaysia), Naypyidaw (Myanmar), or Brasília (Brazil), built from scratch to relieve an existing capital and house government functions. Its smart-city ambitions parallel greenfield developments such as Songdo (South Korea) or Masdar City (UAE).

Usage Scenarios

Government continuity and resilience (backup seat of government)
Sports and events (Athletics Stadium, Aquatics Center, Athletes’ Village)
Residential communities and mixed-use neighborhoods
Green technology, education, research, and innovation campuses

Strategies

BCDA’s strategy centers on phased master-planned development, infrastructure-first investment (roads, water, power, fiber-optics), green and resilient design standards, and partnerships with private developers. Integration with Clark International Airport, the Clark Freeport, SCTEX, and the North-South Commuter Railway anchors NCC within the Clark-Subic corridor.

Security and Safety Measures

NCC is designed with modern flood-control infrastructure (built at higher elevations to avoid Central Luzon flood risk), resilient utilities, disaster-resilient public buildings, and integrated emergency services. The master plan incorporates green space, evacuation routes, and redundancy in power and water to support its government-continuity role.

Historical Context

First announced in 2012 as Clark Green City under the Aquino administration, the project leverages BCDA-owned land within the Clark zone. Construction accelerated in the late 2010s to prepare for the 2019 Southeast Asian Games, which served as a high-profile launch, with development continuing in subsequent phases.

Challenges and Controversies

Challenges include the slow pace of full-scale development versus initial projections, debates on whether a new city is the most effective response to Metro Manila congestion, environmental concerns over developing previously rural land, and questions about equitable land use and the welfare of historically present communities.