CLARK FREEPORT – Pres. Duterte wants the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) to finish within his term 75 flagship infrastructure projects costing P138.2 billion, amid plans to initiate others for total infrastructure cost of as much as P9 trillion by the end of his term.
In a recent interview with Punto,, DPWH undersecretary for unified projects management and technical services Emil Sadain said “the 75 flagship projects under the government´s Build, Build, Build portal include 31 roads and bridges, 12 railways and urban transport, 11 water supply and irrigation projects, six air transport projects, four water transport projects, four flood management projects, four power projects, and three other public infrastructure projects.”
“Infrastructure is among the top priorities of the Duterte administration with public spending on infra targeted to reach P8-P9 trillion from 2017 to 2022. These are high impact projects that are envisioned to increase the productive capacity of the economy, create jobs, increase incomes, and strengthen the investment climate leading to sustained inclusive growth,” he said.
The cost includes those to be funded by foreign Official Development Assistance (ODA) in the form of either loans or grants.
Sadain said that ODA projects already being implemented are nine roads costing P70.6 billion, four major bridges costing P70.6 billion, and five flood control projects costing P52.8 billion, for a total of P138.2 billion.
Sadain furnished Punto with a report on the DPWH´s infrastructure program under the Build, Build, Build program showing that of those funded under ODA , only the Binondo-Intramuros and the Estrella- Pantaleon bridges are to be funded by China.
Most of the projects are funded by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), a few are funded by the World Bank (WB), Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Korean Economic Development Cooperation Fund (KEDCF).
Those funded by JICA include Phase 3 of the Plaridel arterial road bypass project, Phases 1 of the Central Luzon Link Expressway (CLLEx) and the Davao City bypass, the flood risk management project for the Cagayan, Tagoloan and Imus rivers and, the flood risk management project for the Cagayan de Oro river.
Two projects are funded by the KEDCF, including the Samar Pacific coastal road project and “integrated disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation measures in low-lying areas of Pampanga Bay.”
The ADB is funding the improvement of the ¨growth corridors in Mindanao road sector project, while the World Bank is funding Phase 1 of the Metro Manila Flood Management project.
Sadain said these projects are slated for completion in 2021.
He also said that Duterte also wants to start the construction of other big-ticket projects under the ODA even if their completion could not be finished within his term. “These are pipelined ODA projects from 2017 to 2030,” he added.
These projects include 14 bridges costing P1.5 trillion, 10 road projects costing P351 billion, and 14 flood control projects costing 174 billion.
