THE Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) has urged Congress to prioritize the release of funds allotted for the construction of numerous big ticket infrastructure projects to ensure the swift implementation of the department’s programs and projects to hasten economic development nationwide.
DPWH Senior Undersecretary Emil K. Sadain said that infrastructure development is one of the Marcos administration’s priority areas and vowed to implement significant and vital infrastructure projects, such as the construction of new roads, schools, and hospitals, and the protection and promotion of the welfare of the poor and marginalized sectors, among others.
The ongoing construction of the 15 foreign assisted Infrastructure Flagship Projects (IFPs) being implemented by the department is on track for its completion by the end of 2024 and 2025, while the implementation for Detailed Engineering Design (DED) of several other big ticket projects are set for completion in the following year.
The DPWH executive also said the implementation of numerous infrastructure projects in the country creates thousands of jobs.
Among the on-going projects under the DPWH worth P4.84 trillion are expected to be completed before the end of 2024 and mid 2025, while another 27 mega projects amounting to P869.69 billion are in the pipeline that would boost the country’s economy in the coming years, according to the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH).
Sadain said that of the 90 projects for completion in 2023 and beyond, 37 are already ongoing construction.
Some of the projects undergoing Detailed Engineering Design are the Metro Manila Bridges Project; Cebu-Mactan Bridge and Coastal Road; New Manila International Airport; and the Virology Science and Technology Institute of the Philippines, among others.
Undergoing financing processing are the Davao City Expressway; Ambal-Simuay River and Rio Grande de Mindanao River Flood Control Projects; and the LRT 2 West Extension, among others.
Those undergoing procurement include the Panay-Guimaras Negros Bridge Phase 1; Cebu Bus Rapit Transit; New Cebu International Container Port; and EDSA Greenways.
According to Sadain, the on-going construction of Davao River (Bucana) Bridge in Davao City is rapidly taking shape, with significant milestones achieved.
Sadain, in-charge of DPWH infrastructure flagship, said the number of infrastructure flagship projects (IFPs) under the current administration’s “Build, Better, More” initiative has risen to 25 this year.
During the House Organizational Meeting of the Committee on Flagship Programs and Projects, Sadain said that three more IFPs have been completed within the first half of the year.
This brought the completed IFPs to 15 out of 119 from the 12 earlier reported by the DPWH in April this year.
These three newly completed projects are the P7.505-billion Flood Risk Management Project in Cagayan, Tagoloan, and Imus Rivers; the P5.947-billion China grant-funded Metro Manila Logistics Network (Estrella-Pantaleon and Binondo-Intramuros Bridges); and the P9.759-billion LRT-2 East Extension Project.
There are also 10 IFPs up for completion by December 2022, which include the P4.573-billion Pasig-Marikina River Channel Improvement Project Phase 5 (92.73% complete), the P4.497-billion Chico River Pump Irrigation Project (87.64% complete, partially inaugurated on June 25, 2022), and the P4.798-billion Bicol International Airport Development Project (97.328%, inaugurated on October 6, 2021).
Meanwhile, 90 IFPs are for continuing implementation and completion in 2023 onwards, with ongoing construction on 37; ongoing detailed engineering design on 11; ongoing processing of financing on seven; ongoing procurement on eight; ongoing government approval on eight; and ongoing project preparation on 19.
Another flagship projects of DPWH assisted by Korean government are the Samar Pacific Coastal Road Project (SPCR) in Northern Samar which was inaugurated by President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. and DPWH Secretary Manuel M. Bonoan last July 13, 2023; the 3.17-kilometer Panguil Bay Bridge Project (PBBP) that will connect the City of Tangub in Misamis Occidental to the Municipality of Tubod in Lanao del Norte targeted to open to vehicular traffic by first half of 2024; and the Pampanga Integrated Disaster Risk and Reduction and Climate Change Adaptation (IDRR CCA).
The engineering services for the construction of two (2)-sea-crossing bridges connecting Panay Island, Guimaras Island and Negros Island with a total length of 32.47-kilometer located in Western Visayas Region, is also covered by a loan from the Government of the Republic of Korea.