The National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) Board has approved two major infrastructure projects valued at a combined P64.9 billion, which aims to improve connectivity and healthcare in the Philippines.
During its 21st meeting, the NEDA Board, which is chaired by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., approved the P37-billion Mindanao Transport Connectivity Improvement Project (MTCIP), a project of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) to be financed through an official development assistance (ODA) loan from the World Bank (WB).
The project, which was submitted to the Investment Coordinating Committee (ICC) in July 2024, consists of five major components, the MTCIP involves connecting Regions 10, 11, and 12 by upgrading and ensuring the long-term maintenance of the Cagayan de Oro-Davao-General Santos Corridor with road sections encompassing 277.4 kilometers from Cagayan de Oro to Davao and 150.8 kilometers from Davao to General Santos City.
The project also involves the upgrade of three local roads totaling 129.86 kilometers. They are Link Road 1 from Sayre Highway (Patulangan) to Cawayan-Kibenton in Bukidnon; Link Road 2 from Fatima Malabog Road to Saloy-Bantol-Davao-Bukidnon Road to Panabo City; and Link Road 3 from the National Highway Junction in Poblacion Malungon to Sta. Maria Road, Davao Occidental.
The project will enhance capacity, climate resilience, road safety, capacity building, institutional development, project management, and contingent emergency response measures.
“Through the MTCIP, we anticipate significant economic growth in Mindanao’s outlying regions as improved transportation will make travel more accessible and ease the delivery of agricultural goods and services,” NEDA Secretary and NEDA Board Vice Chairperson Arsenio M. Balisacan said.
The NEDA Board also approved the Philippines: Health Systems Resilience Project (HSRP) Phase 1 of the Department of Health (DOH) to help the country generate savings from reduced hospitalization and reduction in premature mortality from non-communicable diseases through the strengthening of the local health system.
Proposed for financing through an ODA loan from the WB with a total project cost of P27.92 billion, the HSRP prioritizes investments in 11 regions to strengthen service delivery and health emergency initiatives, particularly in geographically isolated and disadvantaged areas (GIDAs) that currently lack access to primary care facilities.
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., who is the chairman of NEDA Board, praised the DOH for its forward-thinking approach, describing the program as an application of lessons learned during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The NEDA Board also approved three initiatives submitted by the Committee on Infrastructure (INFRACOM).
The first initiative is the Policy and Criteria for the Selection of Purely Private Business Undertakings for Inclusion in the List of Infrastructure Flagship Projects (IFPs). This policy initiative introduces amendments to the 2023 Guidelines for the Formulation, Prioritization, and Monitoring of the Government’s IFPs to incorporate the selection process for including purely private projects in the IFP list. Said process involves, among others, ensuring the private sector entities’ (PSEs) commitment to government monitoring should their projects be included in the IFP list.
The NEDA Board also approved two other policies that will improve service delivery and enhance monitoring of progress in the water supply and sanitation (WSS) sector.
The Unified Resource Allocation Framework for WSS (URAF-WSS) intends to address the inequitable delivery of basic WSS infrastructure caused by inadequate funding, low technical capacities of service providers, and institutional challenges. It will rationalize and target allocation of available resources to expedite improvement and expansion of WSS services provision and promote leveraging of market-based financing, as well as leveraging grants/subsidies from the national government.
“This is good because it’s specific to the Philippines. It’s not a general approach—it’s tailored even to the specific areas,” Mr. Marcos said during the NEDA Board meeting at Malacañang.
The project, which is aligned with the Philippine Development Plan 2023-2028, aims to rebuild a resilient health system.
It includes measures to enhance project management, monitoring and evaluation, and provides a Contingency Emergency Response Component (CERC) for rapid action in future health crises.
The initial phase will prioritize 17 provinces identified by the DOH for its pilot implementation, focusing on areas with poor healthcare access.
