South Korea has offered $1bn in official development assistance (ODA) to the Philippines to help boost the Duterte administration’s infrastructure programme, Malacanang said yesterday.
In a news conference in South Korea, Palace spokesman Harry Roque said the commitment was made during a bilateral meeting on Monday between President Rodrigo Duterte and his South Korean counterpart, Moon Jae-in, at the Blue House in Seoul.
“On the economic co-operation aspect, South Korea has doubled its overseas development assistance for our infrastructure projects, to support our Build, Build Build programme,” Roque told reporters.
“In previous years, they provide us $500mn in ODA. And now, it was doubled, South Korea has now pledged to provide $1bn for our infrastructure projects,” he said.
Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez, during the same news briefing, said the projects to be funded by the $1bn ODA include the $172.64mn for the new Cebu International Container Port project, $100mn for the new Dumaguete Airport, $50mn for the project preparation facility of the National Irrigation Administration and $41mn for the implementation of electronic receipt, invoices and sales reporting system that will help the government monitor all taxes paid by retailers.
“We intend to maximise this amount committed to us,” according to Dominguez.
He said projects for the remaining $636.36mn in ODA funds will be identified later.
“I recommended to Deputy Prime Minister Kim the use of unallocated amount to two or three of the flagship infrastructure projects identified in the Build, Build, Build programme. We promise to forward to the Korean government as soon as possible a list of flagship projects for their consideration,” Dominguez added.
He said he had assured Korean officials of “our strict monitoring of projects to make sure none of the Korean taxpayers’ money is wasted in corruption and that all ODA-supported projects will bring lasting benefits to the Filipino people.”
The doubling of the amount, Dominguez added, can be attributed to South Korea’s “New Southern Policy,” which aims to deepen ties between Seoul and Southeast Asian countries.
“I expressed the gratitude of the Filipino people for the strong support South Korea extends to our economic modernisation. South Korea is firmly committed to the Philippines economic emergence. We are ready to take our place as one of Asia’s tiger economies, and we will forever be grateful for the generous partnership extended by the Korean people,” he said.
Philippine Secretary of Trade and Industry Ramon Lopez talks with President Rodrigo Duterte during a South Korea-Philippines business forum in Seoul yesterday.
