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Philippines $7.2 Billion Infrastructure Venture

A new Philippine governmental infrastructure program, which is to be implemented to bring about improvement upon and construction for roads, rail systems, airports and regular ports in the country has been announced as having an estimated $7.2 billion in cost over the next four years. The Filipino president`s announcement was taken with incredulity, as well as significant encouragement, by Arroyo administration critics and supporters alike.

Phillippines Budget Secretary Rolando Andaya told news agencies that the 92 "big-ticket" items cited by President Arroyo would amount to that much and about half the funding coming from the annual national budgets for 2007-2010. According to President Arroyo herself, "I am quite confident that we can afford it." Rail projects will make up roughly 48 percent of the project`s total cost, with plans for a light rail loop encircling the metropolitan area of the capital, Manila.

The private sector in the Phillippines would be asked to bid for 18.39 percent of the total costs through "build-operate-transfer" proposals or other similar suggestions. State-run firms would take on about 31.8 percent of the total cost of the program. "The cost per project can still go up or down depending on the prices of construction materials. For example, if oil prices go up, then an escalation in the project cost is to be expected," the Budget Secretary Andaya added.