WB eyes new Mindanao projects

The World Bank is looking at the possibility of funding more projects in Mindanao to unleash the island’s full economic potential.

Motoo Konishi, the new head of the World Bank’s office in the Philippines, recently visited Maguindanao and Cotabato and expressed the multilateral institution’s intention to continue supporting projects that will lift communities in Mindanao from poverty.

Konishi, who was in Mindanao from February 15 to 17, met with local community leaders and local government officials to discuss the area’s potential for economic growth.

The World Bank official said that community development projects—those that are initiated and implemented by community leaders and local officials, but funded by creditors like the World Bank—are expected to significantly help achieve peace and development in Mindanao.

“In the municipalities of Datu Odin Sinsuat and Parang in Maguindanao, I have seen how communities—empowered and working together—were able to address common problems like the lack of drinking water, post-harvest facilities and classrooms for their children,” Konishi said in a statement.

“Their experiences in working collectively to bring about improvements in their lives and their communities are inspiring and should serve as good models for scaling up and accelerating the development impact of community-driven development (CDD) programs in the country,” he added.

Ongoing World Bank-funded projects in Mindanao include the following: ARMM Social Fund (ASF), Mindanao Trust Fund (MTF) and the Mindanao Rural Development Project (MRDP) using the CDD approach.

ASF, funded by a $30-million official development assistance, finances various community-driven projects such as healthcare facilities and day-care centers.

The MTF is a facility that pools funds from various developmental lenders, including Australia, European Union and the United States, among others, to finance various community projects intended for economic and social development.

The latest and second phase of MRDP, worth P4.8 billion, funds nearly 500 infrastructure projects, such as farm-to-market roads, bridges, livelihood programs and irrigation projects.

“In my first 100 days, I want to visit as many towns and barangays (villages) as possible beyond Manila to learn more about the country and the challenges it is facing,” Konishi said.

Prior to his appointment to the Philippines, Konishi served various posts in Central Asia and Europe.

Konishi replaced Bert Hofman, who now serves as the chief economist for the East Asia and the Pacific and director of the World Bank’s Singapore office.