MANILA – The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) has committed to support the Philippine government in accessing more development grants for resilient infrastructure projects, the Department of Finance (DOF) said.
In a statement on Tuesday, the DOF said the AIIB made the commitment during the annual meeting of the Board of Governors of the AIIB held from Sept. 21 to 27, 2024 in Samarkand, Uzbekistan.
“Recognizing that project implementation delays equate to development denied, we request even stronger support from the Bank through regular comprehensive portfolio reviews to assist the government and the AIIB project teams in promptly identifying project implementation issues, coming up with potential solutions and strategies, and facilitating closer monitoring and coordination among relevant stakeholders, with the objective of resolving various implementation-specific concerns encountered,” DOF Undersecretary Joven Balbosa said.
Balbosa represented Finance Secretary and AIIB Governor for the Philippines Ralph Recto during the annual meeting.
The DOF said the AIIB committed to support the Philippines in accessing grants through the Multilateral Cooperation Center for Development Finance (MCDF) Finance Facility with the AIIB as an implementing partner.
The MCDF is a multilateral financial mechanism designed to promote high-quality infrastructure and connectivity investments in developing countries.
The DOF said the AIIB also responded to the Philippine government’s call to assign dedicated country focals to ease coordination and further strengthen partnerships, leading to the timely delivery of projects and programs that will contribute to the Marcos administration’s vision of a comfortable and secure life for Filipinos.
The AIIB is a multilateral development bank (MDB) focused on developing Asia, and is composed of 109 member countries including the Philippines.
In the Philippines, AIIB-supported active projects include the Metro Manila Flood Management Project co-financed with the World Bank, and the Bataan-Cavite Interlink Bridge Project co-financed with the Asian Development Bank (ADB).
The government is also processing AIIB loans for other big-ticket infrastructure projects including the Laguna Lakeshore Road Network Project-Phase 1 and the Metro Manila Rail Transit Line 4 (MRT4) Project slated for 2024 and 2025, respectively.
These projects are both co-financed with the ADB.
The AIIB also has its first standalone project, the Facility for Accelerating Studies for Infrastructure (FAST-Infra), which is targeted to be signed this year.
The project will support the formulation of a transport infrastructure master plan. (PNA)
