Local government units (LGUs) are being encouraged to consider Public-Private Partnership (PPP) as one of their viable options in implementing their infrastructure projects. To boost the PPP Center’s LGU PPP strategy, the agency led by its Executive Director Ferdinand A. Pecson and the League of Cities of the Philippines (LCP) represented by its National President, Angeles City Mayor Edgardo D. Pamintuan signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on July 18 that will support this initiative.
“PPP is one of the pillars of the administration’s infrastructure strategy. What we need to do is to come up with more projects from LGUs through the PPP route”, PPP Center Executive Director Pecson said.
“We welcome this collaboration between the PPP Center and the League of Cities of the Philippines as our partners in PPPs”, he added.
LCP National President and Angeles City Mayor Edgardo Pamintuan welcomes this move to bring PPPs to LGUs. Pamintuan stressed the importance of the PPP Center in building awareness among LGUs on the value of PPPs as a development strategy.
“Educate us more on PPPs, and we will educate fellow city members,” Pamintuan said.
The MOU with the LCP is part of a larger project being undertaken by the Center to establish a Protocol for Stakeholder Engagement for Local PPP Projects. The protocol will establish a consultation mechanism based from target stakeholders specifically from the SOCCSKSARGEN region in Mindanao involved in various local PPP projects. The stakeholder consultation, which will be held on August 1, 2017 in General Santos hopes to surface issues, solutions and challenges on developing and implementing PPP projects raised by the participants.
Executive Director Pecson emphasized that stakeholder consultation is being done to solicit inputs and suggestions from LGUs in improving PPP implementation in the localities and helps address problems encountered by the LGUs.
“The PPP Center is very much behind the League of Cities in their pursuit of development through infrastructure projects, specifically through PPPs. The upcoming consultation will further boost this partnership,” Pecson added.
