Senate bill seeks 30-year PH infrastructure masterplan

Senator Sherwin Gatchalian has filed a measure seeking to create a 30-year comprehensive infrastructure development master plan (CIDMP), which will serve as the framework of the government's infrastructure programs and projects.

Under Senate Bill 1652, the CIDMP, led by the Masterplan for Infrastructure and National Development (MIND), aims to support the achievement of the overall long-term development vision of the country as a prosperous middle-class society, and streamline private and public infrastructure investments.

It shall also ensure policy continuity and further define and clarify the role of various government agencies and instrumentalities in the development of critical infrastructure projects.

Gatchalian, chairman of the Senate committee on finance, said the proposed legislation comes at a time when the budget allocation for national infrastructure has consistently increased. 

Based on the 2026 General Appropriations Act (GAA), the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) was allocated P529.595 billion. 

The bicameral conference committee had said P20.7 billion was saved following the reductions in overpriced construction materials for government infrastructure projects.

Gatchalian noted that from 2022 to 2025, budget allocations for national infrastructure projects grew by an average of 7.9% annually, based on Department of Budget and Management (DBM) data.

"We need to lock in the country's development goal and lock out political interference. With infrastructure taking a bigger piece of the budgetary pie, we need to ensure that every peso is spent on projects that truly benefit ordinary Filipinos," the senator said in a statement.

"Kapag ang masterplan ay naka angkla sa batas, hindi ito madaling palitan at maipagpapatuloy ang mga importanteng imprastraktura kahit na magpalit-palit pa ang mga nasa pwesto," he added. 

(If this masterplan is integrated in the law, it would not be easy to change and the important infrastructure projects could be continued even if politicians come and go.) — VDV, GMA Integrated News