Metro Manila, May 24 ----- The Asian Development Bank (ADB) will give the Philippines up to US$4 billion in support of the country’s socioeconomic development plans and infrastructure programs for 2023, Malacañang said.
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. learned of the grant from ADB President Masatsugu Asakawa during their meeting at the bank’s headquarters on Monday, Palace said. "This 2023 alone, we expect to provide up to US$4 billion to support the government's socioeconomic agenda and the Build Better More infrastructure development program," Asakawa said as quoted by the Palace. This includes preparation of several transformative projects such as the Bataan-Cavite Interlink Bridge Project, the Davao Public Transport Modernization Project, and the Integrated Floor Resilience and Adaptation Project," he added.
Asakawa also said ADB's financing to the Philippines rose by fourfold and hit a total of US $12.7 billion between 2018 and 2022. Due to the country's vulnerability to the impacts of climate change which heightens exposure to severe weather events, Asakawa said the ADB is fully committed to helping the Philippines address climate change, saying "it will be a core priority of our assistance going forward."
Asakawa said during the COVID-19 lockdown in early 2020, he had the privilege of distributing food packages procured under the Bayanihan project to over 260,000 vulnerable families in Metro Manila. He also expressed gratitude to the Philippines for being a good host to the ADB's annual meeting in September 2022, where the ADB revealed its US$14-billion assistance package for developing member countries to help them address food security issues from 2022 to 2025. The Palace said the ADB was the Philippines' top source of active Official Development Assistance (ODA) among 20 development partners in 2022, accounting for 34% (US$10.74 billion for 31 loans and 28 grants) of the US$31.95-billion of the total active ODA. From 2010 to 2022, the ADB's annual loan financing for the Philippines averaged at US$1.4 billion.
Malacañang said three loans amounting to US$1.10 billion were signed with the bank within the first nine months of the Marcos administration.
Source: cnnphilippines.com
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