Gov’t seeking $150M from AIIB for Metro Manila flood control project

The Philippine government has officially proposed for cofinancing of China-based Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) a $500-million flood control project in Metro Manila.

Documents showed that the Philippines sought funding of $150 million from the AIIB for the Metro Manila Flood Management Project.

The government was eyeing to secure another $150 million from the World Bank, $192.6 million from the national budget, and $7.4 million from the Global Environmental Facility.

The AIIB was expected to approve its counterpart funding for the project by June, documents showed.

The project will be implemented by the Department of Public Works and Highways, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, and the Metro Manila Development Authority.

Implementation period was set from July this year until December 2023.

The project was aimed at improving flood management in selected Metro Manila areas “by constructing new and modernizing existing selected pumping stations and their supporting infrastructure, by improving solid waste management practices within the vicinity of drainage systems served by the selected pumping stations, and by supporting the resettlement of project affected people.”

“The project will focus on about 56 potentially critical drainage areas with an approximate land area of 11,100 hectares or over 17 percent of the total area of Metro Manila. This will include an area covered by new pumping stations of about 2,900 hectares, with a total population of about 970,000 people or about 210,000 households,” the project summary information read.

“The Philippines is highly vulnerable to natural disasters with exceptionally high exposure to cyclones and floods. The country, on average, is struck by 20 cyclones every year causing widespread flooding across the country including Metro Manila,” the document noted.

“The government of the Philippines—after the widespread destruction caused by tropical storm ‘Ondoy’ (internationally named Ketsana) in 2009—stepped up efforts to improve flood management in Manila to make it a safer place for its inhabitants. A comprehensive flood management master plan for the greater Metro Manila area was prepared and approved by (the Philippine government) in 2012, recommending a set of structural, non-structural and institutional measures for implementation. Urban drainage, a crucial element in the city’s master plan, relies on a combination of drainage channels, waterways and pumping stations,” according to the document. —BEN O. DE VERA