MANILA, Philippines – Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Ralph Recto said the government plans to frontload in the first quarter the implementation of infrastructure projects lined up for 2009, saying this would help pump-prime the economy amid an expected global recession.

"We are already requiring concerned agencies to submit detailed engineering plans for various infrastructure projects," he said.

Recto, who is also the director general of the National Economic and Development Authority, said government agencies have also been asked to begin bidding procedures for infrastructure projects so that these could be implemented immediately after Congress approves the proposed P1.4-trillion national budget for 2009.

The national budget has been approved by the Lower House and the Senate, and is now with the bicameral conference committee, the joint committee of both chambers, for fine-tuning.

"Agencies can have these projects bid out to interested contractors, short of awarding the contracts, while the budget is still in the process of approval," Recto said.

He added that the government would prioritize infrastructure projects that are easy to implement, especially those that are not burdened by right-of-way problems. Minor roads, bridges and irrigation projects are also easy to implement, he explained.

Recto said the government has proposed to allot about P160 billion of the 2009 budget for capital outlays. He stressed the importance of maximizing the government's budget for infrastructure to help the economy meet official growth targets.

"If we spend the budget immediately and get resources out as fast as we can, then we have a better chance of maintaining a decent growth [rate]," Recto said.

The Arroyo administration's economic team has set a goal for the economy to grow between 3.7 and 4.7 percent next year. This is slower than the estimated growth of between 4.1 and 4.8 percent for this year, but Recto said next year's growth target would still be respectable given the global crisis.

The International Monetary Fund, in its World Economic Outlook for 2009 released recently, said the world economy would grow by only 2.2 percent. IMF said that a global growth of below 3 percent already constitutes a recession. The expected global recession next year would likely be led by the US and some countries in Europe, whose economies were projected to contract next year.

The Philippines has also been affected by the global crisis, which started out in the US subprime mortgage market in 2007.

The US and Europe are two of the country's biggest export markets.

Many overseas Filipino workers, whose remittances help boost domestic consumption, are also based in the US and Europe.

Recto pointed out, however, that the plan to boost infrastructure spending would help cushion the impact of the global crisis on the Philippines.

Dennis Arroyo, director of Neda's policy and planning division, said the government's push for infrastructure projects would help drive the construction business in 2009.

He added that the construction sector would be one of the growth drivers for the economy next year. Another factor for this is the sustained growth of the business process outsourcing industry, which would continue to fuel demand for office space.

Arroyo said another growth driver for 2009 would be the slowdown in inflation, which he said would boost household spending.

The annual inflation rate, which hit a 17-year high of 12.5 percent in August, slowed down to 9.9 percent in November following the sharp drop in oil prices. Inflation is also expected to further slow down next year, Arroyo said.