MANILA, Philippines — The government is “massively investing” on calamity-resilient infrastructure projects across the country to prepare for natural calamities, Secretary Mark Villar of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) assured on Wednesday.
During the Meet Inquirer Multimedia forum, Villar said that the DPWH was undertaking various resiliency projects given the country’s “susceptibility to natural disasters,” noting that most of its budget for 2019 was allocated for such projects.
“This government is massively investing in resiliency projects. In fact, most of our budget is allocated for resiliency,” Villar said.
The DPWH secretary cited as an example the rehabilitation of several bridges in Metro Manila to make them “seismic-rated” in preparation just in case of any major seismic event.
He also noted that the agency is building new school buildings that are “typhoon-resilient” and could withstand strong winds of up to 250 kilometers per hour (kph).
He also pointed out the establishment of evacuation centers in all the regions so as not to “disturb” schools when natural calamities sweep through the country and evacuation of families is necessary.
“In terms of investment, given our susceptibility to natural disasters, the DPWH is investing in these kinds of projects,” he said. /jpv
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