PH, ADB firm up $600M in loans

THE PHILIPPINE government and Manila-based multilateral lender Asian Development Bank (ADB) are firming up two fresh program loans totaling $600 million, or about P26.5 billion, intended to support capital market as well as infrastructure development.

National Treasurer Roberto B. Tan said that $300 million each was being eyed from the ADB for the two initiatives.

“We’re trying to get the loans within the year,” Tan told reporters on the sidelines of a public-private partnership financing forum last Friday.

Philippine government officials and ADB representatives met on Friday at a workshop aimed at firming up the proposed policy-based loans, he said.

“Given that the loans will be financing infrastructure and, at the same time, capital market development, the Bureau of the Treasury and the Department of Finance are deeply involved [in the discussions with the ADB],” said Tan, who is also finance undersecretary.

These new loans would likely have the usual ADB concessional loan maturity of 15 years, Tan said, although the two sides have yet to finalize the terms.

National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) data showed that the ADB was the third largest source of aid and loans among multilateral lenders during the fourth quarter of last year, having committed $2.2 billion or about P97.2 billion.

The amount of aid and loans pledged by multilateral lenders as well as developed countries rose to $11.3 billion or about P499.5 billion during the fourth quarter of 2014, Neda reported last March. Two-fifths of the fourth quarter pledges had been intended for infrastructure development, according to Neda.

The overall net commitment for official development assistance-assisted programs and projects during the October to December period was higher than the $8.1 billion or about P358 billion recorded during the same three-month period of 2013.

The fourth quarter net commitment was comprised of 13 program loans worth $4.1 billion (about P181.2 billion) on top of 62 project loans amounting a total of $7.2 billion (about P318.3 billion).