THE Duterte administration approved a total of P808.44 billion worth of projects in 2020, according to data obtained from the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda).
Based on the data, the Neda Board’s approval covered 17 projects which were mainly submitted for Official Development Assistance (ODA) funding.
The big-ticket projects approved in 2020 were the P189.53-billion Panay-Guimaras-Negros Island Bridges Project; P175.66-billion Bataan-Cavite Interlink Bridge (BCIB) Project; and P81.69-billion Beneficiary FIRST! (Fast, Innovative, and Responsive Service Transformation) or Covid-19 Emergency Social Protection Project (ESPP).
Other projects included the P76.4-billion Cebu-Mactan Bridge (4th Bridge) and Coastal Road Construction Project and the P57.07 billion Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) 4 Project.
The Neda Board also granted the request for a three-year extension of loan validity of ODA-component of LRT Line 1 South Extension Project which amounts to P64.915 billion. This is a locally-funded project.
The data also showed that as of February 2021, two projects worth P20.18 billion were approved by the Investment Coordination Committee (ICC).
The first is the Philippines Seismic Risk Reduction and Resilience Project worth P15.09 billion. The Neda Board has approved the project this year.
However, the other project is the change in scope and cost for the Philippines’s Covid-19 Emergency Response project worth P5.09 billion.
The project, per Neda documents, was approved by the ICC in 2020 but the additional $300-million financing could be approved in December 2021.
ODA dependence
The Philippines continues to rely on foreign aid to finance infrastructure and non-infrastructure projects, Neda data showed.
A total of 73 projects worth P2.026 trillion approved by the Duterte administration between 2016 and 2021 are funded by ODA. The Neda documents showed a total of 91 projects worth over P3 trillion were approved by the current administration.
Based on the data, the government approved the most number of ODA projects in 2018, when a total of 22 projects worth P117.43 billion were greenlighted.
However, in terms of ODA cost, the government approved the most in 2017, with ODA approvals reaching P951.2 billion and covering 17 ODA approvals.
The major approval in that year is also the largest ODA project in the country, the P356.97-billion Metro Manila Subway Project Phase 1.
The 25.3-kilometer subway will run from Mindanao Avenue in Quezon City to FTI in Taguig, then to Naia.
Project components include civil works; electromechanical, signaling, and telecommunications systems; station facilities; depot facilities; land acquisition; and procurement of rolling stock.
Data obtained by the BusinessMirror from the Neda last year showed the total ODA received by the country reached $26.21 billion as of June 2020. This is composed of $24.6 billion worth of loans and $1.61 billion.
The country received the most ODA funding from Japan, Asian Development Bank, World Bank, Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) and Korea.
ODA from Japan amounted to $10.1 billion or 38.53 percent of the total; ADB, $7.07 billion or 26.98 percent; World Bank, $4.98 billion or 18.98 percent; AIIB, $957.6 million or 3.65 percent; and Korea, $679.65 million or 2.59 percent.