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ADB to lend the Philippines nearly $2B a year
The Asian Development Bank expects to lend an estimated $7.8 billion, or nearly $2 billion annually, from 2018 to 2021, under a new six-year country partnership strategy.
It would be the highest for any 4-year period, the Manila-based multilateral lender said Thursday.
“The annual average also doubles the current estimated yearly lending pipeline,” the bank said in a statement.
The overall lending amount will be funded from ADB’s ordinary capital resources, which will be augmented through cofinancing with other development partners, the bank said.
Cofinancing refers to ADB’s partnerships with bilateral and other development institutions to finance the government’s investment requirement.
ADB’s board of directors has approved the new country partnership strategy (CPS) that lays out the bank’s support to the Philippine government in achieving its goal of attaining sustained high and inclusive economic growth.
Under the new strategy, ADB intends to actively pursue cofinancing arrangements with development partners to better assist the government attain its goal of lowering poverty to 14 percent of the population by 2022.
Also part of the new strategy is ADB’s rebalancing of the counry's financing assistance to support the Philippine government’s “Build, Build, Build” infrastructure initiative.
“Reflecting the rebalanced lending pipeline, transport will make up 47 percent of ADB’s Philippine operations from 2018 to 2021, up from 2.2 percent in the last seven years.”
ADB-backed projects include the Malolos-Clark Railway, North-South Commuter Rail, Metro Manila Bridges, Bataan-Cavite Long-Span Bridge, and EDSA Greenways projects.
“We sincerely appreciate the support extended to us by the ADB. This manifests their confidence in the DOTr, the ‘Build, Build, Build’ program, and the Duterte administration,” said Goddess Libiran, the Department of Transportation’s director for communications. —Ted Cordero/VDS, GMA News
