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Friday, March 29, 2024

Flagship list weighs project readiness, job creation

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THE “readiness” of projects as well as their contribution to the creation of high-quality jobs are among the criteria that the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) will use to parse the long list of infrastructure projects eyed for inclusion in the administration’s own “flagship” projects.

On Monday, Neda Secretary Arsenio M. Balisacan told reporters on the sidelines of the formal launch of the Philippine Development Plan (PDP), that Neda has received a number of priority projects from various agencies and Regional Development Councils (RDCs) for the Public Investment Program (PIP).

Out of the PIP, the accompanying document of the PDP that outlines the projects and programs to be undertaken to meet the medium-term development objectives of the government, the government will carve out a shorter list to be dubbed the Marcos administration’s flagship projects.

“We are developing those criteria right now but obviously, it has to be sensitive to the goals and objectives of the PDP. We have identified in the PDP…the constraints to our medium-term development, what the pressing needs are and what it takes to achieve those targets, the job targets, the generation of high quality jobs and the reduction of poverty to single digit level,” Balisacan explained.

Project readiness is also an important consideration in choosing which projects to undertake, he added. This means that projects to be chosen could already have feasibility studies or are in more advanced stages of development.

“Preparing projects takes time, especially if they don’t have feasibility studies yet,” Balisacan said.

In Frankfurt, Germany last week, Balisacan mentioned that government agencies have identified over 3,600 projects, worth $372 billion, for inclusion in the Public Investment Program (PIP) and the Three-year Rolling Infrastructure Plan (TRIP).

Balisacan said this list includes 206 projects worth $159 billion that will be part of the Marcos administration’s own “flagship” projects.

He said the bulk of these projects or 136 of them are on physical connectivity; 42 are in water resources; nine in digital connectivity; eight in health; two in power and energy; and another nine in other sectors.

Balisacan said by the end of December 2022, the government has identified 87 projects worth $54 billion that will be undertaken via Public Private Partnership (PPP). A number of these projects will be included in the Marcos administration’s flagship list.

He also said infrastructure projects would allow the Philippines to promote local and global connectivity, as well as ensure the resiliency and sustainability of local energy and water supplies.

Balisacan said these would be part of the transformation of the Philippine economy, where Filipinos will enjoy livable communities where spaces for work, recreation, and transit will be integrated.

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