Gov’t shelves eight flagship infrastructure projects

August 6, 2020

The Philippine government has shelved eight flagship infrastructure projects with an estimated cost of P370 billion amid the coronavirus disease pandemic.

Presidential Adviser on Flagship Programs and Projects Vivencio Dizon, in a virtual press briefing on Thursday, said the eight projects were still under feasibility studies.

"There were eight that were dropped for now because there's still ongoing feasibility study," he said.

Dizon said the government wants to pursue projects which are in the advanced stages of the list of government's approval.

"The total of all these projects is roughly about 370 billion (pesos)," said Dizon, who is also the president of the Bases Conversion and Development Authority.

The projects, which the government would not pursue yet, are the Bataan-Cavite Link Bridge that will connect Cavite to Bataan via Manila Bay; Dalton Pass East Alignment; New Zamboanga International Airport; New Dumaguete Airport; Panay River Basin Integrated Project; Kabulnan Multi-purpose Irrigation and Power Project; Kanan Dam Project; and Guimaras to Negros Portion of the Panay Guimaras Negros Bridge.

Dizon said the proposed framework for the "re-prioritization" of the Build, Build, Build program include available fiscal space for infrastructure projects in 2020 to 2022; project readiness and implementation capacity of line agencies; economic growth and jobs impact of projects; interest and risk level of private sector; and inclusion of health and digital economy projects to address emerging needs from COVID-19 and the new normal.

He said the government has retained 92 infrastructure flagship projects with an estimated total cost of P4.1 trillion.

Of the flagship projects, 29 are under the public-private partnership arrangements, he added.

The government is banking on the Build, Build, Build program in order for the economy to recover after falling into a recession due to two consecutive quarters of decline of the country's gross domestic product. Celerina Monte/DMS