The National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) said the government will soon release guidelines for public-private partnership (PPP) projects after it approved a revised list of flagship infrastructure projects which included PPPs.
Ernesto Pernia, socioeconomic planning secretary, said in a press conference in Pasig City yesterday the Investment Coordination Committee (ICC)-Cabinet level and the Committee on Infrastructure approved the updated list of infrastructure flagship projects of the Duterte administration which is now at 100.
Of the total projects, 26 will be implemented through PPP.
“We’ll have a statement about guidelines for PPP projects as well as another statement about the flagship project list in general… guidelines on what are the criteria, on what are included in the flagship projects,” Pernia said.
“We want to make sure that PPP projects are going to benefit the people. We don’t want government guarantees, subsidies… anything having to do with MAGA (material adverse government action). We’re very restrictive. It took us almost a year just to pass the operation and maintenance for the Bohol Panglao International Airport and that’s because it goes to so many iterations,” he added.
“We want to make sure we won’t get sued out of all these… there’s always a danger when we’re not so careful about dealing with projects,” Pernia said.
He said the revised list of projects is deemed more feasible, responsive to medium and long-term demands and challenges towards uplifting the quality of life of the Filipino people, especially those being left behind.
The government’s share in the 100 projects is approximately P4.2 trillion.
Te NEDA ICC-CabCom approved four infrastructure projects on November 6.
NEDA said in a statement yesterday these projects are the Samal Island-Davao City Connector (SIDC) and the Camarines Sur High-Speed Highway Projects of the Department of Public Works and Highways; the Davao Public Transport Modernization Project (DPTMP); and the Unsolicited Proposal for the New Bohol International Airport.
The SIDC project, with an estimated total cost of P23.04 billion to be financed through Official Development Assistance (ODA), involves the construction of a toll-free four-lane bridge with an approximate length of 2.8 kilometers that can serve around 25,000 vehicles a day.
The connector project will provide a permanent road linkage between Davao City and the Island Garden City of Samal, which is expected to reduce travel time and address reliability constraints due to the current conditions of the ferry services in the region.
DPTMP aims to provide an attractive, efficient and affordable mode of transport in Davao City. The project will cost P18.67 billion and is proposed to be financed through an ODA loan.
The Camarines Sur High-Speed Highway project, estimated to cost P9.23 billion, involves the construction of a 15.21-km. four-lane highway intended to serve as an alternative route from Legazpi or Caramoan to Manila and vice versa.
The unsolicited proposal for the operations and maintenance of the New Bohol International Airport will be under a 25-year concession period.
