200 seaports planned to connect remote islands in PH

MANILA, Philippines — An additional 200 seaports, worth a total of P12.5 billion, are being programmed across the country up to 2028 to improve connectivity of remote islands in order to beef up their economy and disaster resilience.

Transportation Undersecretary for maritime sector Elmer Sarmiento told reporters on Wednesday in Pasay these terminals were just small in capacity, accommodating the needs of fishing boats and roll-on/roll-off (Ro-Ro) vessels.

“We call it social tourism and farm-to-market ports … We would like to connect these remote islands to bigger island economies for their economic growth,” he said, noting the country currently has about 2,000 seaports.

Sarmiento identified Turtle Islands—a municipality in the province of Tawi-Tawi—as one of the locations.

Apart from commercial activities, Sarmiento said building the ports was crucial for disaster response during typhoons.

Susceptible

Situated in the Pacific Ring of Fire, the Philippines is susceptible to earthquakes, landslides and volcanic eruptions. It is also vulnerable to weather-related phenomena, including typhoons.

READ: DOTr mulls construction of more seaports

The DOTr official said they were hoping to secure financing from the Department of Budget and Management to be able to jump-start the projects. Sarmiento shared that the Department of Transportation (DOTr) has completed 250 port projects since 2015.

“This continuous port development is also in line with the vision of achieving a strong and reliable Philippine merchant fleet that addresses the sea transport requirements of the archipelago,” he said.

Passenger traffic up

Previously, the DOTr also laid out plans of building and expanding 14 Ro-Ro ports across the country. Each is estimated to cost P100 million.

These include San Vicente Roro Port, Maconacon Port and Palanan Port in Northern Luzon; Dilasag Port, Baler Port, Infanta Port and Catanauan Port in Eastern Luzon; Cadiz Port, Ajuy Port and San Fernando Port in Central Visayas; Lupon Roro Port and Sta. Ana Roro Port in Mindanao.

The Philippine Ports Authority reported that passenger traffic in sea terminals surged by 24 percent to 73.61 million in 2023 from 59.19 million previously. However, this was still below the 2019 level of 83.72 million passengers.

Cargo throughput or cargo traffic, meanwhile, grew by about 5 percent to 271.97 million metric tons (MT) last year from 259.14 million MT in 2022, surpassing the prepandemic volume of 265.88 million MT.