Gov’t lines up 169 PPP projects for implementation

About 169 public-private partnership (PPP) projects with a total cost of P3.18 trillion are slated for implementation, data from the Public-Private Partnership Center showed.

Of these, 113 projects worth P2.977 trillion are national projects, while 56 projects worth P206.15 billion are to be implemented at the local level.

These projects are currently designated as under procurement, competitive challenge, negotiation, approval, development, conceptualization and initial evaluation by the implementing agency.

The PPP Center is involved in the development, appraisal, procurement, implementation or monitoring of these projects.

According to the PPP Center, contracts for two projects are expected to be awarded by the end of this year. These are the P4.53-billion New Bohol International Airport and the P1.2-billion Negros Occidental Bulk Water Supply Project.

Also, by 2025, the financing, design, engineering, construction, operation, and maintenance of a 300-bed cancer hospital at the University of the Philippines-Philippine General Hospital is expected to be awarded. The total project cost is estimated at P9.49 billion.

Other contracts slated for awarding next year are those for the Bislig City Bulk Water Supply, Bislig City Septage Project and Dialysis Center PPP Project for the Renal Center Facility of the Baguio General Hospital and Medical Center.

In a statement, the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) said PPP projects are essential for improving disaster resilience in the Philippines amid financial constraints brought by the pandemic.

“Limited fiscal space, especially in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, necessitates developing our governance framework for public-private partnerships to finance climate-resilient infrastructure,” Neda Secretary Arsenio Balisacan said.

While most of the country’s PPP projects focus on physical and digital connectivity, Balican noted that there are also significant projects planned for water supply, flood control and irrigation.

Meanwhile, Neda Assistant Secretary Roderick Planta shared that the Marcos administration is working on establishing a national standard for infrastructure resilience.

President Marcos has emphasized the importance of boosting investments in disaster risk reduction and creating financing mechanisms to effectively manage disaster risks.

“Sustained and predictable data and financing would help address disaster risks better. This entails ensuring that developing countries, particularly the least-developed countries, landlocked countries, and small island developing states, are provided greater access to these resources to advance their policies and build disaster resilience,” Mr. Marcos said in his speech at the 2024 Asia Pacific Ministerial Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction held on Oct. 15.