Some PHP 17.32 billion has been allotted in the 2019 budget for Negros Oriental for infrastructure and other projects under the “Build, Build, Build” program of the administration of President Duterte.
Edward Du, the regional director of the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry for Region 7 and former president of the Negros Oriental Chamber of Commerce and Industry (NOCCI) disclosed Thursday that the amount forms part of the total PHP 128.27 billion for Central Visayas which the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) is proposing for inclusion in the 2019 budget.
The total amount for the region covers 2,134 projects.
According to him, majority of the projects that the DPWH would undertake under the “Build, Build, Build” program for Negros Oriental would include national roads, inter-provincial roads (Negros Oriental and Negros Occidental), and bridges.
The biggest chunk of the proposed budget allocation for Region 7 goes to Cebu with PHP 76.24 billion or 59.44 percent (771 projects); Bohol with PHP 29.02 billion or 22.62 percent (518 projects); Negros Oriental with PHP 17.32 billion or 13.50 percent (391 projects); and Siquijor with PHP 5.69 billion or 4.44 percent (454 projects), according to information shared by NOCCI based on the DPWH 2019 Budget (PAPS of projects, activities, and programs).
Du is hopeful that this will pass Congress but considering the tedious government processes, he believes it might yet be by 2021 when these projects are implemented by the DPWH.
As for the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), NOCCI has made recommendations to the agency for its Roads Leveraging Linkages for Industry and Trade (ROLL IT) Program under the “Build, Build, Build,” said Du.
The projects are to benefit the economic sector such as farmers and fisherfolk, among others, he added. (Judy Flores Partlow/PNA)
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