The National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) Board has approved a total of 194 infrastructure flagship projects that will received priority status for development over the next five years under the administration of President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr.
The said projects is said to support the government’s efforts to attract investors, generate more jobs, and address poverty in the country.
Of the 194 projects, 71 are continuing projects which were previously prioritized during the administration of former president Rodrigo Duterte. Meanwhile, 123 are new projects.
While some of the projects will benefit the whole country in general, there are 10 distinct projects located in Western Visayas. These include five continuing projects which are ongoing with the construction phase, detailed engineering design, and project preparation.
The other five are new priority projects which are in the project preparation stage or pre-project preparation stage. As defined in the DPWH Infrastructure Development Cycle, projects under the preparation stage are those projects which are set to undergo or currently undergoing feasibility study or advanced levels of study. The feasibility study consists of various investigations and tests necessary to determine whether the project can and should be carried out including the methods and schedule.
Meanwhile, pre-project preparation stage can be equated to project identification in the infrastructure development cycle wherein projects are identified for their potential and rapid assessment is undertaken to assess and estimate their possible returns on investment.
Below is the list of the 10 Infrastructure Flagship Projects we can expect to develop in the next years:
| ID | Status | Project Name | Development Stage | Lead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19 | Continuing | Bacolod-Negros Occidental Economic Highway | Implementation | DPWH |
| 21 | Continuing | Boracay Circumferential Road | Implementation | DPWH |
| 54 | Continuing | Jalaur River Multipurpose Project, Stage II | Implementation | NIA |
| 38 | Continuing | Panay-Guimaras-Negros Island Bridges Project | Detailed Engineering Design | DPWH |
| 71 | Continuing | Upgrading and Improvement of Iloilo International Container Port | Project Preparation | PPA |
| 106 | New | Antique Airport Development Project | Project Preparation | DOTr |
| 131 | New | Iloilo-Capiz-Aklan Expressway | Project Preparation | DPWH |
| 144 | New | Panay River Basin Integrated Development Project | Project Preparation | NIA |
| 163 | New | Iloilo-Sta. Barbara Bus Rapid Transit | Pre-Project Preparation | DOTr |
| 178 | New | Panay Railway System | Pre-Project Preparation | DOTr |
These projects are part of the Build Better More program, a successor infrastructure development campaign of the Build, Build, Build program of the previous administration. The 194 projects are expected to cost PHP9 trillion in total and will be funded by various sources such as the general appropriations (the annual budget of the government), multilateral loans, foreign aids, and public-private partnership.
Ilonggo Engineer 