Sarah Patricia de la Fuente has spent the last six years building places that bring people, enterprise, and purpose together. As Head of the Project Development and Management Group at Aboitiz Economic Estates, she leads the master planning and delivery of integrated estates across the country—spaces where industries thrive, communities grow, and progress is shared by all.
An architect by profession, Sarah approaches every project with equal parts technical discipline and social awareness. For her, design is only meaningful when it improves people’s lives and creates spaces that connect, empower, and endure.
The First Leap at Aboitiz
Her Aboitiz journey began in 2019 with a leap of faith. At the time, Sarah was an architect looking for work that would bring her closer to real, on-the-ground impact. When she joined Aboitiz Land as a Project Development Officer, she found exactly that.
Overseeing residential communities in Pampanga, Nueva Ecija, and Tarlac, she quickly learned that true development isn’t just about blueprints or budgets—it’s about how people live each day. Whether it meant safer streets, better amenities, or homes that fostered belonging, Sarah saw that planning must always begin and end with people. That early experience became the foundation of her leadership philosophy: growth only matters when it’s shared.
Embracing the Change
Just as she had found her footing, the pandemic arrived—and with it, another major change. Sarah was invited to move into the Industrial and Commercial Business Unit, which was then integrating into Aboitiz InfraCapital and would later evolve into Aboitiz Economic Estates.
It was a world apart from residential development: industrial operations, locators, infrastructure, and masterplanning at scale. Yet she embraced the challenge, joining the LIMA Estate team to design a business ecosystem that was both efficient and human-centered. Every infrastructure layout, transport link, and shared facility was planned not only for operational excellence but also to make daily life better for workers and the surrounding community.
That period taught her that taking opportunities means earning them through openness and grit. When she later took on transformation initiatives alongside her project development role—all while completing business school—Sarah once again found herself stepping into the unknown. She learned that leadership is not about having all the answers, but about being willing to listen, learn, and adapt.
Our Shared Purpose
Today, Sarah leads project development across all four Aboitiz Economic Estates. Her team designs with both scale and sustainability in mind, building spaces that strengthen industries while creating opportunities for people. Their work ensures that infrastructure, utilities, and shared facilities are planned with long-term resilience—so communities can grow alongside enterprise.
The reintegration of Aboitiz Land and Aboitiz Economic Estates embodies this very purpose. By bringing together expertise in residential, commercial, and industrial development, the Aboitiz Real Estate Group continues to build environments where businesses, people, and local economies flourish together. Across these developments, more than 100,000 people have found livelihoods and opportunities shaped by this vision. Thoughtful planning, rooted in purpose, has become a shared calling across teams.
For Sarah, that shared purpose is what gives meaning to every leap. While plans may shift, what keeps us grounded is the strength of our foundation and the values we build on together. Change, after all, is about building smarter on what already works. It calls for clearer communication, shared accountability, and everyday habits that help us adapt with intention. Those who thrive are the ones who stay curious, flexible, and open to new ways of working—approaching change with steadiness and the same commitment to learning that has always guided our growth.