(Eagle News) — Department of Finance (DOF) Undersecretary Grace Karen Singson said that the government’s 75 flagship projects under the “Build, Build, Build” program of the Duterte administration are expected to create 1.7 million jobs by 2022.
She said the Duterte administration intends to spend around $158 billion over the next five years for the program, so that infrastructure spending would reach 7.3 percent of Gross Domestic Product by the end of the President’s term.
The 75 flagship projects consist of six airports, nine railways, three bus rapid transits, 32 roads and bridges, four seaports, and four energy facilities, Singson said.
Also included in the projects according to the undersecretary are four energy facilities that will ensure stable power supply at lower prices; 10 water resource projects as well as irrigation systems that will raise agricultural output; five flood control facilities that will help protect vulnerable communities as well as boost their resilience against the impact of climate change; and three redevelopment programs that will deliver sustainable solutions to best meet the needs of urban populations.
She said overall, the projects will also help bring down the costs of production, improve rural incomes, encourage countryside investments, and make the movement of goods and people more efficient, thereby securing the country’s fast-paced growth in the medium term to “attain economic inclusion for all Filipinos.”
Singson said the program is the centerpiece of the present administration’s vision to reduce poverty incidence from the present rate of 21.6 percent to 14 percent by 2022.