After years of planning and preparation, the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) has begun constructing two bridge projects in Mindanao that cost P2.14 billion.
DPWH officials together with Asian Development Bank (ADB) representatives led last June 3 the groundbreaking for the two-year construction of the Nalil-Sikkiat Bridge over Bongao Channel and the Malassa-Lupa Pula Bridge over Manalik Channel to mainland Tawi-Tawi Island.
The two bridges aim to decongest Bongao, the capital of Tawi Tawi, by bringing the development in the mainland through an improved connectivity between islands/municipalities of the province. These are part of the ADB funded Improving Growth Corridors in Mindanao road sector project.
With less than a month left before the term of President Rodrigo Duterte ends, DPWH is committed to push forward the implementation of high-impact infrastructure flagship projects under the Build, Build, Build program (BBB) that will bring long-term benefits to the Filipinos in the countryside, said Emil Sadain, DPWH undersecretary and BBB chief implementer.
According to Sadain, construction of the Nalil-Sikkiat and Malassa-Lupa Pula bridges including the proposed Tongsinah Paniongan Bridge over Sanga-Sanga Channel connecting to Papahag Island, which is under DPWH’s procurement stage and also forms part of the Improving Growth Corridors in Mindanao road sector project, will open up potentials for the tourism and fishing industries of Tawi-Tawi.
Sadain also noted a proposed port development, the Malassa International Port, given the island province’s economic potential as it is in the path of international shipping containers.
Located in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao occupying the southwestern part of Sulu archipelago and considered the largest seaweed producing province in the Philippines, Tawi-Tawi is a hidden treasure waiting to be discovered. – Myla Iglesias
