THE Asian Development Bank (ADB) plans to lend $4.22 billion to the Philippines to help finance infrastructure projects and other development initiatives over a three-year period, the Manila-based lender said on Tuesday.
ADB plans to finance five projects and programs worth $990 million this year, mostly in the southern island of Mindanao, where Philippine President Rodrigo R. Duterte hails from. But the multilateral lender may fund up to 16 projects and programs worth $3.23 billion over the next two years, according to a list released by the bank.
It also expects to provide $9.3 million in technical assistance to the Philippines over the three-year period, ADB said.
The government was looking to boost infrastructure spending to 7.4% of the GDP by 2022 from the more than 5% planned for this year, Mr. Duterte said during the ADB’s 50th anniversary celebration on Tuesday.
His speech on that occasion was a departure from his usually improvised, expletive-filled remarks that barely touched on economic issues. This time, a predecessor of Mr. Duterte, Fidel V. Ramos, said: “I congratulated him for saying the right things and for sticking to the script, which he himself wrote. That’s the way it should be. No foul language.”
Mr. Duterte and his economic development team approved on Monday the 2017-2022 Philippine Development Plan, a blueprint to boost growth and lift Filipinos out of poverty. — main report by Reuters, with Ian Nicolas P. Cigaral
22 February 2017
