Philippines and Japan Sign 33.7 Billion Yen Loan Projects

Philippine Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert F. del Rosario and Japanese Ambassador to the Philippines Kazuhide Ishikawa signed and exchanged notes on the two yen loan projects, namely, the Metro Manila Priority Bridges Seismic Improvement Project and the Davao City Bypass Construction Project (South and Center Sections) worth JPY 33.689 billion (approximately PHP 13 billion).

Philippine Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima and Japan International Cooperation Agency President Akihiko Tanaka also signed the loan agreement for the two projects.

The Metro Manila Priority Bridges Seismic Improvement Project of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) aims to strengthen resilience of the transport network in Metro Manila during the occurrence of large-scale earthquakes by replacing, retrofitting, and reinforcing the Guadalupe Bridge and Lambingan Bridge.

On the other hand, the Davao Bypass Construction Project, Package 1 – South and Center Sections also by the DPWH aims to improve the transport logistics and mitigate congestion in Davao City by constructing a two-lane, 28.8 km bypass that consists of road, tunnel, and bridge sections.

These projects reaffirm Japan’s steadfast commitment in assisting the Philippines in achieving its goal of quality infrastructure development, while strengthening the Strategic Partnership between our two countries.

Japan continues to be the Philippines’ top source of bilateral official development assistance. Japan’s assistance, through loans, grants and technical cooperation, covers a wide range of areas, including public works, socio-economic infrastructure, transportation and communications, agriculture, and capability-building, among other areas.