DAVAO CITY—A team from the Japan International Cooperation Agency or Jica recently presented to the city government the outline it prepared for a feasibility study on a flood control and mitigation project in the city, which will focus on the Davao River.
Nozomu Yamashita of Jica said the study will become the basis for the crafting of a master plan against the perennial problem of flooding in the city, which the Japanese government has approved for funding.
The master plan, he said, will become the city’s guide during the next 30 years in setting priorities and sequence of implementation in so far as flood control and mitigation measures are concerned.
City Planning and Development coordinator Ivan Cortez said the city government gave assurances it would actively back the Jica master plan design, such as in the submission of all available data.
“Flood control and mitigation is among the agenda of Mayor Sara Duterte; thus, this feasibility study and masterplan will be very advantageous for the city,” City Administrator Zuleika Lopez said.
During the presentation, which was also attended by Undersecretary Emil Sadain of the Department of Public Works and Highways, representatives from the National Economic Development Authority, City Engineer Joseph Dominic Felizarta, and Japanese Consul Tomoko Dodo, the Jica team also put emphasis on the need for continued investment in Disaster Risk Reduction.
They cited the case of Japan, which faces daily threats from earthquakes.
Yamashita revealed that the approval of the master plan’s formulation was “record breaking” as it only took the Japanese government a month to do so.
Sadain said the request was filed in November last year and was approved in December.
The news of its approval was revealed by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to President Rodrigo Duterte during his visit to the city in January.