PPP Center
Press Release
May 18, 2012
Newly appointed Acting Socioeconomic Planning Secretary and Director-General of the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA), Dr. Arsenio M. Balisacan, stressed the role of NEDA in making sure that current infrastructure programs complement with other development programs of the government to ultimately achieve the Aquino Administration’s vision of inclusive growth. Secretary Balisacan made this pronouncement during his first press conference at NEDA sa Pasig on May 17, 2012.
In his opening statement, Secretary Balisacan said that NEDA will continue the initial strides made by Public-Private Partnership (PPP) Center and hopes to further make PPP projects attractive to investors even in rural areas. Reiterating the importance of continuity, he added that NEDA will continue to find ways to speed up implementation of the PPP Program.
Secretary Balisacan recognizes the PPP program as one of the key modes in addressing the bottlenecks in building high quality infrastructure, especially those that support rural development. He also established that infrastructure support is clearly linked with poverty reduction.
Prior to Secretary Balisacan’s appointment in NEDA, he was Dean and Professor of the University of the Philippines (UP) School of Economics, Executive Director of the Philippine Center for Economic Development and Adjunct Professor of Australian National University. He is a recognized expert in Asia on poverty, food security, agricultural and rural development, impact assessment and governance issues.
Photo: New NEDA DG , Secretary Arsenio M. Balisacan fields questions from media during his first press conference at NEDA sa Pasig, May 17, 2012.
