The National Economic and Development Authority Board, chaired by President Marcos approved 194 water and physical connectivity projects worth P9 trillion and greenlighted the amendments to the joint venture guidelines to ensure faster implementation of projects.
At its fourth meeting, the National Economic and Development Authority, chaired by President Marcos, approved the list of Infrastructure Flagship Projects for 2013 consisting of 194 projects worth P9 trillion, of which 45 are to financed by private sector partners under the reinvigorated Public Private Partnership Program.
NEDA Secretary Arsenio Balisacan, in a press statement, said the IFPs are mostly on physical connectivity and water resources, which include irrigation, water supply and flood management and those in digital connectivity, health, power and energy, agriculture, and other infrastructure.
Some of the new projects in the new list are: the Panay Railway Project, Mindanao Railway Project III, North Long Haul Railway, San Mateo Railway, UP-PGH Diliman Project, the NAIA or Ninoy Aquino International Airport Rehabilitation Project, Ilocos Sur Transbasin Project, and the Metro Cebu Expressway.
Aligned with the priorities under the 8-Point Socioeconomic Agenda of the Marcos administration and the plans outlined in the Philippine Development Plan for 2023-2028, these high-impact and urgently-needed infrastructure projects aim to showcase the government’s Build-Better-More program.
The new IFPs are seen to address the binding constraints to business investment and expansion that will create more, high-quality, and resilient jobs that will allow us to meet our poverty-reduction goals for the medium term.
IFPs shall be prioritized under the government’s annual budget preparation and enjoy the benefits of expedited issuance of applicable permits and licenses consistent with current legal frameworks. These projects will adopt an optimal mix of financing from various development partners, that is ODA, the national government, that is General Appropriations, and the private sector, particularly Public-Private Partnerships.
To hasten the rollout of these projects, the government is strongly promoting the utilization of public-private partnerships or PPPs, one of the cross-cutting strategies likewise identified in the Philippine Development Plan 2023-2028.
The government shall harness the financial and technical resources of the private sector, which allows the public sector to allocate its funds for greater investments in human capital development, especially to address the scarring in health and education due to the pandemic and provide targeted assistance that protects vulnerable sectors from economic shocks.
To ensure the quality and timeliness of project execution, the NEDA Board designated NEDA as the lead agency, will monitor the implementation of the IFPs as part of its program monitoring function pursuant to Executive Order No. 230. The list of IFPs will be posted publicly on the NEDA website and social media accounts for your reference.
JV Guidelines Amendments
The Board approved the proposed amendments to the 2013 NEDA Joint Venture Guidelines, wherein the NEDA will process the issuance of the revised JV Guidelines in accordance with Section 8 of Executive Order 423, Series of 2005.
The amendments aim to enhance competition for projects under joint ventures, ensure better performance of private-sector participants, and improve checks and balances to ensure that the project is technically and financially sound. The amendments shall also ensure that the guidelines are aligned with the provisions of the recently amended Build-Operate-Transfer or BOT Law Implementing Rules and Regulations and the proposed amendments to the BOT Law or PPP Act pending in Congress, but which are expected to be passed by this year.
The administration’s thrust for infrastructure shall enable the transformation of the Philippine economic landscape within the next six years. Recognizing that our country has much work to do to catch up with our dynamic neighbors in the region, we will pursue high-impact initiatives that aim to encourage greater local and foreign investment and private-sector participation in infrastructure development.
Today’s approval of the new IFP list and the amendments to the NEDA JV guidelines is a giant step toward our goal of elevating our competitiveness as we promote the Philippines as a prime investment destination in the region. We will connect and integrate markets to enable access to more opportunities for local industries, enhance the productivity of our young and vibrant labor force, and create safer infrastructure for future generations.
Tags: #NEDABoard, #IFPs, #P9trillion, #amendedjointventureguidelines