Marcos bares 23 newly-approved infra flagship projects

President Ferdinand “Bongbong” R. Marcos Jr. (INQUIRER.net file photo/Ryan Leagogo)

MANILA, Philippines — President Ferdinand “Bongbong” R. Marcos Jr. on Tuesday announced the approval of 23 new infrastructure flagship projects (IFP) as part of his administration’s Build Better More Program.

“We’ve approved 23 new IFPs, including the Davao City Bypass Construction, as part of our P9.14 trillion Build Better More Program!” said Marcos in a social media post.

“This brings our total IFPs to 185,” he added.

In a statement, National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) Secretary Arsenio Balisacan said that the approval is aimed at prioritizing crucial projects to ensure they receive the necessary support for efficient and accelerated implementation.

“Our list of IFPs under the Build-Better-More Program serves as a prioritization tool to identify high-impact infrastructure projects that require immediate government support. By rationalizing the list, we ensure the implementation of as many important infrastructure projects of high significance as possible,” Balisacan said.

which ended up being removed from the list would still proceed as planned as they were already part of the regular government programs.

Meanwhile, Neda Usec. Joseph Capuno said that as of the fourth quarter of 2023, 74 IFPs are already being implemented, 30 of which had been approved for implementation, while 10 were awaiting government approval, and 83 were undergoing either project or pre-project preparation.

Among the 74 ongoing projects, 19 are scheduled to be completed this year.