NEDA to release infrastructure program in Q1

MANILA, Philippines — The National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) plans to release within the first quarter the Public Investment Program (PIP), which lists the government’s priority projects for this year until 2028, as well as the infrastructure rolling program for 2024 to 2026.

“Within this quarter, we will be releasing what we are calling the PIP for 2023 to 2028, as well as the three-year rolling infrastructure program for 2024 to 2026,” NEDA Secretary Arsenio Balisacan said during the Philippine Economic Briefing in Frankfurt in Germany.

The PIP contains the list of priority programs and projects the government wants to complete within the plan period to contribute to achieving the goals under the Philippine Development Plan (PDP) or the country´s overall development blueprint.

Meanwhile, the rolling infrastructure program is used to inform the budgeting process for the government’s key priority projects.

Balisacan said various government agencies have identified over 3,600 projects amounting to around $372 billion for the PIP over the medium term.

“Out of these 3,600 projects, we are looking at a shorter list of what we call the infrastructure flagship projects that we would want to see implemented, completed, or at least started during the administration up to 2028,” he said.

Balisacan said there are 206 projects worth $159 billion that may form part of the shorter list.

Of the 206 projects, 136 are on physical connectivity, nine are on digital connectivity, 42 are on water resources, eight are on health, two are on power and energy, and nine involve other sectors.

“These projects are chosen for their responsiveness to the goals of the PDP,” Balisacan said.

He said many of the 206 projects are likely to be in the form of public-private partnerships (PPPs).

As of the end of last month, he said the government has identified 87 projects with an expected cost of $54 billion in the pipeline for PPPs.

“With those projects, we will see a major transformation of the physical landscape of the country in the next six years,” he said.

He said the projects would also mean available opportunities for both local and foreign businesses.

As part of the aim to continue to achieve high economic growth, the government is pushing for PPPs to address the country’s infrastructure gaps.

Balisacan said the current administration intends  to spend five to six percent of the country’s gross domestic product for infrastructure development.