ADB approves $380-million loan for improvement of road network in Mindanao

This handout photo taken on June 25, 2017 and released on June 26 by the 1st Infantry Battalion of the Philippine Army shows rescuers escorting trapped residents (center L) and carrying the body (R) of a dead resident from ground zero of the fighting between government forces and Islamist militants in Marawi, on a dusty road./ AFP / 1st Infantry Battalion/Philippine Army/

(Eagle News) — The Asian Development Bank has approved a $380-million loan to help “strengthen the road network and spur economic development” in Mindanao.

In a statement on Friday, the ADB said the amount “will help finance the detailed design of 300 kilometers of national highways in Mindanao, which will be constructed through other projects.”

Jeffrey Miller, Principal Transport Specialist at ADB’s Southeast Asia department, said the strengthening of roads in southern Philippines “will support the development of economic opportunities in areas such as agribusiness, ecotourism, and logistics, and improve access to markets, jobs, education, and health facilities.”

The ADB said “efficient road transport,” after all, is “crucial for the Philippines’ economic growth.”

“Mindanao’s road network is less developed than the national average, with only 70% of the roads paved, compared with 82% in Luzon and 89% in the Visayas. Despite its rich natural resources, Mindanao also has the highest poverty incidence among the Philippines’ three island groups at 32%, largely because of civil conflict and low economic growth,” ADB said.

According to the lender, “institutionally,” the loan will also “help the Department of Public Works and Highways improve the long-term planning, fiscal accountability, and human resource management in the transport sector in Mindanao and the rest of the country.”