Finance Secretary Ralph G. Recto has secured financing agreements with the Government of Korea, through the Export-Import Bank of Korea (KEXIM), on the new Dumaguete Airport Development Project and the latest Economic Development Promotion Facility (EDPF) that will deliver more infrastructure projects nationwide.
“The new airport will enhance our capacity to welcome a surge of tourists in the post-pandemic era. With the new Dumaguete airport, we anticipate accommodating up to 2.5 million passengers per year, up from just 800,000. From serving limited domestic flights, we can now open the door to international routes,” Secretary Recto said during the exchange of notes and signing ceremony on the said projects on August 7, 2024.
With a total cost of PHP 17.06 billion, about PHP 13.15 billion of which is supported by KEXIM, the new Dumaguete City Airport project covers 197.55 hectares of land development in the Municipality of Bacong, Negros Oriental to construct a new airport facility that complies with domestic and international standards for operational safety and efficiency.
It is envisioned to enhance the tourism and trade potential, economic activities, and standard of living in the province.
“The necessity for a bigger and more modern airport is undeniable, especially considering that Negros Oriental currently has only one major airport,” he said.
Aside from Dumaguete, Secretary Recto emphasized that the government is looking at upgrading more regional airports in the country to ensure that the fruits of growth and modernization reach every island in the archipelago.
“We are making sure that no destination is left behind,” he stressed.
The Finance Chief also highlighted that the USD 3-billion new EDPF will serve as an additional financial bridge for realizing the Marcos, Jr. administration’s Build Better More Program.
“The facility we have signed today with South Korea will enable us to deliver more infrastructure projects nationwide, from roads and bridges to disaster risk reduction efforts,” he said.
Among the projects in the pipeline being considered for possible funding assistance under the new facility are the Panay-Guimaras-Negros Island Bridges; the Consolacion-Liloan Bypass Road Project; the Lapu-Lapu Coastal Road Project of the DPWH; and the Pampanga Integrated Disaster Risk Reduction and Climate Change Adaptation Project Phase II.
Secretary Recto is confident that these infrastructure projects will not only enhance mobility, but improve the lives of Filipinos by creating more jobs and businesses, boosting incomes, uplifting lives, and reducing poverty.
He vowed that the Department of Finance (DOF) is ready to support the implementing agencies to ensure the projects’ uninterrupted funding and delivery.
“We will also see to it that we monitor and personally visit the projects to ensure their timely completion,” he said.
Secretary Recto thanked the Government of Korea, represented by KEXIM Chairman and President Yoon Hee-sung during the event, for helping drive the Philippines’ progress through robust infrastructure development.
“These strategic investments that you are generously supporting will certainly underpin all our efforts to build an economy that is truly inclusive for our people—one that secures the future of every Filipino child,” he said.
The financing agreements for the projects were signed between Secretary Recto, on behalf of the Philippine Government, and KEXIM Chairman and President Yoon, on behalf of the Government of Korea.
The financing for the new Dumaguete Airport project carries very concessional terms, with interest rates of 0.05% per year for non-consulting services and 0.0% per annum for consulting services, to be repaid in 40 years, inclusive of a 10-year grace period.
Meanwhile, the individual financing of projects to be lined up under the EDPF will carry an indicative interest rate of 1.2%, to be repaid in 25 years, inclusive of a 7-year grace period.
Present during the event were Department of Transportation (DOTr) Secretary Jaime Bautista; DOTr Undersecretatries Timothy Batan and Roberto Lim; DOF Undersecretary Joven Balbosa; National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) Undersecretary Joseph J. Capuno; and Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) Deputy Assistant Secretary Leah Victoria T. Carada.
Also in attendance were KEXIM Director General Kim Kyung-Lin; KEXIM-EDCF Country Director Seo Jung Won; Dumaguete Mayor Felipe Antonio B. Remollo; and Bacong, Negros Oriental Mayor Lenin Alviola.
