Cebu City, capital of Cebu Province is the second city of importance in the Philippines. This significant metropolitan centre is the oldest city in the country. Located on the eastern shore of Cebu it is home to Philippines' domestic shipping port with 80% of the country's domestic shipping companies.

Cebu gets the second largest international air traffic in the Philippines and remains a significant centre of commerce, trade and industry. Metro Cebu includes the cities of Mandaue, Lapu-Lapu and Talisay. The Mactan-Cebu International Airport, located in Lapu-Lapu City is only a twenty-minute drive away from Cebu City.

Cebu City is one of three centers of education in Philippines along with Manila Metropolitan Area and Metropolitan Davao. It has nine large universities each with a number of college branches throughout the city and more than a dozen other schools specializing in various courses such as Medicine, Engineering, Nautical courses, Nursing, Law, Computer and IT and among others.

The University of San Carlos is the oldest educational institution in the Philippines having four colleges around the metropolitan area. The University of the Philippines, Visayas, located at Camputhaw in the district of Lahug in Cebu City offers eight courses with plans of expansion and development.