Regional body to monitor status of airport dev't projects

TACLOBAN CITY, May 17 (PNA) -- The Eastern Visayas Regional Project Monitoring Committee (RPMC) will include airport development projects as top priority in their quarterly evaluation starting this year.

“RPMC members pushed for the inclusion of airport project in our monitoring because we have been endorsing their budget every year,” said National Economic and Development Authority Regional Director Bonifacio Uy, RPMC chairperson.

Currently, the RPMC’s assessment only covers projects of the Department of Public Works and Highways, National Irrigation Administration, Philippine Coconut Authority, Department of the Interior and Local Government, Department of Social Welfare and Development and Department of Environment and Natural Resources.

In the last quarter of 2015, the RPMC headed by NEDA, assessed 1,339 projects in Eastern Visayas for the last quarter of 2015 with a total cost of PHP27.88 billion, both funded by the national government and foreign institutions.

The monitoring system examines the status of projects, including the cause of delay and measures being undertaken to address bottlenecks.

For Tacloban Airport alone, the government will embark on a PHP1.06 billion various development projects this year.

The budget will mainly be used for rehabilitation of shore protection, improvement of existing terminal building and other activities, which is up for finalization of detailed plans, according to the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines.

The RPMC pushed for regular monitoring of airport projects after noting that full development of Tacloban airport is still unseen despite funding commitments from the central government. (PNA)

JMC/SARWELL Q. MENIANO