The Department of Finance (DOF) said multilateral agencies like the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (Ifad) bared plans to help the Philippines rebuild war-torn Marawi City.
According to Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III, aside from the assistance to be provided by the World Bank in helping rebuild Marawi City, the ADB and Ifad also committed to help the war-torn city get back on its feet.
DOF Assistant Secretary Ma. Editha Z. Tan said the ADB has pledged a grant of $5.225 million for the city’s rebuilding requirement, even as the Japan Fund for Poverty Reduction bared a similar package. The Ifad has yet to set an amount, however.
Dominguez also said the Philippines needs expert post-conflict assistance whose critical importance was demonstrated in the aftermath of the Zamboanga siege in 2013.
“I mentioned to them, okay the only other conflict we really had was the one in Zamboanga. The last government didn’t do anything about it so we didn’t learn how to handle post-conflict situations,” he said.
The so-called Zamboanga siege in 2013 was waged by a faction of the Moro National Liberation Front against the Philippine
government.
The expertise required essentially pertains to post-traumatic counseling and how to help the local industries become
operational again.
According to Dominguez, something like a special economic zone for local manufacturers could go a long way for Marawi and its residents to get the city back on their feet again.
“As I said, we don’t really have the expertise and we want to look to our partners for expertise,” he added.
Earlier, Dominguez said the end of conflict in Marawi City should help boost investor confidence in the economy now that the government can focus on a comprehensive plan to reconstruct the city and provide economic opportunities for its returning residents.
He said the record performance of the stock market following President Duterte’s announcement last week of the liberation of Marawi City from Islamist militants rekindled investor sentiment as the conflict ended.
The Philippine Stock Exchange Index (PSEi) gained 49.80 points, or 0.59 percent, to end 8,497.74 on Tuesday. That day’s stock rally saw an 8,586.73 intraday peak.
But even with the crisis in Marawi City and the declaration of martial law in Mindanao, the business community remained bullish on the economy and supported the President’s decisive action to deal with the terrorist attack, according to Dominguez.
The government still has to conduct clearing operations and assess the extent of the damage so that it could come up with a detailed recovery, reconstruction and rehabilitation program for the city.
Efforts are now under way to provide immediate assistance to displaced residents and open up economic opportunities that would enable them to get back on their feet and rebuild their lives.