DFA to clarify with South Korea loan for bridge project

The Department of Foreign Affairs said Thursday it will clarify with South Korea the 700-billion won or about P28-billion infrastructure loan project to the Philippines ordered halted by President Lee Jae-Myung.

"The Department of Foreign Affairs will continue to speak with the Embassy of the Republic of Korea with a view to clarifying matters with ROK," it said in a statement.

The Foreign Affairs Department said it took note of South Korean President Lee Jae-Myung's statement on a project proposal submitted to South Korea for funding.

Lee announced in a Facebook post that he “ordered an immediate halt to the proceedings for the project.”

“What is most fortunate is that the project has not yet commenced, meaning funds such as the Economic Development Cooperation Fund (EDCF) support have not been expanded,” the South Korean leader said.

The DFA said the Department of Finance has already issued on Tuesday its statement that there is no existing loan with South Korea for the stated project.

The DOF added “the P28-billion Rural Modular Bridge Project is currently being proposed for financing by the Government of France, not South Korea.”

In a separate statement, the Finance Department said that as part of “standard practice,” the Philippine government is exploring financing options with multiple development partners for key projects.

“In this case, the project was initially considered for funding through South Korea, but the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) decided to halt previous discussions last year due to non-alignment on scope and other key technical specifications,” the Finance Dept. explained.

Further, the agency said the Philippines side, as early as the last quarter of 2024, decided to look for other bilateral partners who can implement the full scope of the project

“Hence, there is no existing loan for the said project with South Korea,” the DOF said.

“The government is now in advanced negotiations with the French Government to finalize the project’s technical and financial terms,” it said.—AOL, GMA Integrated News