Philippines to spend 28 billion dollars on infrastructure projects

MANILA, April 27, 2006 (AFP) - The Philippines plans to spend 1.5 trillion pesos (28 billion dollars) on major infrastructure projects over the next five years, seen as a hindrance to investments, the government said Thursday.

It plans to finance 56 percent of the costs and rely on the private sector for the balance of funds required for the projects.

About 743 billion pesos worth of transportation projects lead the list, the economic planning department said in a statement.

The rest would be spent on the power sector, water utilities, communications and social infrastructure.

Infrastructure spending would account for about four percent of the country's total gross domestic product for 2006-201O, the statement added.

"Infrastructure plays a crucial role in boosting economic growth and reducing poverty. Substantial investment is needed to create new infrastructure and maintain or improve existing ones," Economic Planning Secretary Romulo Neri said.

Well thay should increase spending to 10%.

What transport infrastructure improvements are planned?

This is great news.....I've seen some pics of roads and highways in Manila, and I was uterly shocked at the congestion

wow...thats huge.

What transport infrastructure improvements are planned?

My guess for the transportation bit:
1. build more rural roads and highways to support agriculture.
2. construct more mass transit MRT lines in Metro Manila. Line 7, Line 1 extention, Line 3 extention and possibly line 4 will start construction within that 5 year timeline mentioned above.
3. Northrail (commuter rail link between MM and Clark)
4. DMIA - Diosdado Macapagal International Airport in Clark. A new international airport. Linked to Metro Manila by Northrail and NLEX (north luzon expressway).
5. Southrail and other rail projects throughout the country (possibly including Mindanao rail)
6. C-6 ~ Circumferential highway around MM.
7. New domestic and international airports throughout the country - ie. Panglao International Airport in Bohol, a popular tourist destination.
8. SLEX (south luzon expressway) extention and rehabilitation
9. Completion of the MM skyway? :dunno:
etc...

$28 Billion is quite ambitious, actually. Lets just see what the govt. actually does.

Is C-6 fully access controlled?

Haha... C-6... it'll never happen...

:(

That's a lot of money there. I wonder how they can afford taxing them to earn that much money. I thought much of Philliphines is poor.

The Philippine government actually takes in a lot of revenue every year. Of course, once you factor in the bribes and the "utang na loob" payments, it looks a lot smaller.

The Philippines was way, way better than it was 10 or even just 5 years ago.
I hope C-6 will push through. The government is playing the guessing game on that issue. Oh well, it might be a surprise. But, we badly need that new highway! EDSA, C-5 and Roxas Boulevard-Coastal Road cannot accomodate all vehicles crossing Metro Manila. I'm confident that MRT-7 and the MRT/LRT extensions will start construction this year or the next. There's also no doubt that Northrail will become a reality. Southrail will possibly start in a few years time. Completion of the Skyway is not a dream yet. SLEX will finally get a facelift this year. We might also be seeing its extension to Quezon on 2007. The Clark-Subic-Tarlac Expressway's construction is at full swing. International airports in Daraga and Panglao are sure to push through. I hope that we will be seeing "trailers" or teasers for a brand new mega-airport at DMIA. NAIA will reach full capacity by 2012..

Good for Philippines though. It will improve the city life.

Roxas Blvd. is going to be under a lot more stress when the Mall of Asia opens in full capacity.

Well Manilla will become the new hong kong!

Roxas Blvd. is going to be under a lot more stress when the Mall of Asia opens in full capacity.

I think it's the Diosdado Macapagal Blvd., not Roxas.

As for Manila becoming the new HK, It will take a long time to reach HK's level. Manila will be more the new Dubai :D

"I think it's the Diosdado Macapagal Blvd., not Roxas."

The mall itself is located in the South Reclamation Area at the western terminus of the EDSA. DM Blvd. passes by the Mall of Asia, but that's not the trunk road that brings people into the area; it's just a side-road. When people drive down from north Manila to the Mall of Asia, they will hit Roxas Blvd. first.

Some Existing Infrastructures in the Philippines

Bridges

http://www.dpwh.gov.ph/InfrastructureProjects/IPCompletedProjPics/BAMBAN.JPG

http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid87/p04f546e1083b39fa12ed78df6ff07630/fa95f43d.jpg

http://www.dpwh.gov.ph/InfrastructureProjects/IPCompletedProjPics/Mactan_Bridge.jpg

The longest bridge in the country and one of the longest in Southeast Asia
http://www.philtourism.com/bigimages/mpbr_3012[1].jpg


Tunnels

http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid165/paeb476ca0d5e57bf77d2518792ab7ba1/f471d0b3.jpg

Footbridges

http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid165/p0bdabc9165213bd1e37a64408af08da4/f46655c7.jpg
http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid165/pb11c07d6300a8653e915fdcce59e4d23/f46655c9.jpg

Photos by Pau_p1


Some flyovers

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v162/pau_p1/DSC06760.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v162/pau_p1/DSC06756.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v162/pau_p1/DSC06766.jpg

^^Thanks for posting the pics esp, the one that shows the Ortigas area of C-5.

Well Manilla will become the new hong kong!
Haha, I hope so. Like WANCH said, it would be more like the "Dubai of Southeast Asia"
I'm so excited about these projects. This is ambitious...yet possilbe and practical :)

http://www.dpwh.gov.ph/InfrastructureProjects/IPCompletedProjPics/Mactan_Bridge.jpg


^^ it look like penang bridge :shocked:
btw, how long the bridge ??

^^ Is definately isn't as long as the Penang Bridge, and its not the longest bridge in the country; according to www.jbic.go.jp/english/oec/post/2002/pdf/082_smry.pdf , the length is 1,100m. It spans from Lapu-Lapu City on Mactan island to Mandaue City on Cebu Island. Its the second of such bridges, the first bridge (which was built back in 1972) runs parallel to it and is around 864m :)

28 billion? OMG... that's another big utang.. but its for a real good thing..

Teensy compared to our existing utang ;)

^^ :lol: yeah.. this plan better work well. ;)

That's a lot of money there. I wonder how they can afford taxing them to earn that much money. I thought much of Philliphines is poor.

filipinos are poor but not the philippines. philippines have the money but most of it goes to debt payments.

^^Yeah, we're the world's 25th largest economy. That's way closer to number one than to the last placer. We also get billions of money from remittances and a big percentage of the electronics exports to the world comes from the Philippines.

It's not a lot of money. That's only 300 billion a year. A powerplant can go up to a billion $ each and we need to build several of these and these are only powerplants.

Anyway the article is long on rhetoric short on details be interesting to see what has been approved for this 5 year spending plan.

Kuwait firms plan $10 bln Philippines investments

KUWAIT, Jan 15 (Reuters) - Kuwaiti firms including logistics provider Agility plan to invest more than $10 billion in infrastructure projects in the Philippines, the company leading the group said on Tuesday.

The firms and one non-Kuwaiti company plan to develop airports, ports, railways, power stations and telecommunications, Kuwait investment firm Al-Abraj Holding Co said in a statement.

The deal is pending a signing with the Philippine government expected at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, later this month, Abraj Deputy Chairman Sameer Nasser Ali Hussein told Reuters.

The Philippines government has said it wants to invest 1.7 trillion pesos ($41 billion) in its power, water, telecommunications and transport industries by 2010. Last year, it offered 10 infrastructure projects worth $2 billion to foreign investors.

LUCRATIVE

Gulf Arab states and companies, buoyed by record oil prices, have been looking to invest more in Asia, where economies are growing faster than in Europe and the United States, traditional destinations for their surplus funds.

Qatar's $60 billion sovereign wealth fund, the Qatar Investment Authority, said last month it plans to spend at least $850 million in Indonesia, its biggest commitment to the country. [ID:nL06717821]

Kuwait's Abraj said the group would set up a holding company in Europe, of which the Kuwaiti partners would own 75 percent and British firm Argon, acting on behalf of Philippine authorities, 25 percent. This could change a little, Hussein said.

He said Abraj wanted to raise the money possibly through an initial public offering, while Philippine institutions would also contribute to the project.

Kuwaiti partners include International Leasing & Investment and al-Mal Investment Co , Abraj said.

Agility said negotiations were continuing. "A big part of this project would come to Agility," Hussein said.

The biggest investment from the Middle East in the Philippines is a 40 percent stake held by state-owned Saudi Aramco in Petron Corp , the largest oil refiner in the country.

OMG! $28 Billion in 5 years for infrastructure?! :eek:

i just wish that the government is a lot tougher when it comes to pushing their programs. I think money is not a problem at all, it's the will of the government that's the problem. I say, PUSH IT!

Teensy compared to our existing utang ;)

In case you don't know, Philippine foreign/external debt is roughly US$ 55 billion. Therefore, US$ 28 billion isn't 'teensy' compared to our total external debt.

BTW, the country in the world with the highest amount of total external debt relative to GDP (Nominal) is the United Kingdom. According to the CIA World Factbook it has US$ 8.28 trillion in total external debt back in 2006. Meanwhile, it's 2006 nominal GDP was, roughly, three-and-a-half times smaller.

Link:Here (https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/uk.html)

So, I say that the 'huge-ness' of our country's foreign/external debt is highly-sentimentalized, IMHO.

Note that the latest figures for Philippine nominal GDP (2006) is US$ 117.56 billion (according to the International Monetary Fund). Note, too, that the figures for Philippine external debt published by CIA World Factbook are 2006 figures.

^^ maybe because the Philippines' ability to pay is not as good as UK's ;)