ICEP on building roads & increasing connectivity

Recently a friend of mine (a corporate executive who is also a car lover) confided in me that the yellow Porsche Boxster 718 “tugs at his heart” but he hesitates on buying one. He said, and I quote: “practicality issues hound me especially with our awful traffic.” His practical considerations included the lack of Philippine roads where he could enjoy driving a nice sports car.

Recently Bloomberg cited the Philippines as the fastest growing economy in Asia. In November 2016, the Philippine Statistics Authority announced that the country’s Gross Domestic Product increased to 7.1 percent. Bloomberg observed that the Philippines’ strong economic performance underscored the nation’s resilience to global risks as investment surged and consumers spent more.

The Philippines has a growing middle-income base, and with that, more people can afford to buy cars. But the question is, will there be enough infrastructure to support this growth?

An event that shed light on questions like this was the first Infrastructure Congress and Expo Philippines (ICEP) held last May 3 to 5 at the World Trade Center.

With support from government and private agencies, ICEP served as a platform for several infrastructure and connectivity-related industries (ports, roads and bridges; transport and ICT/telecom; power and water; and security and disaster prevention) with exhibitors from such industries having various booths. 

ICEP’s event was an opportunity for Local Government Units (LGUs) to network, and connect with relevant national agencies, private sector suppliers and organizations necessary for building LGU communities. ICEP was well attended by delegates from national and local governments, contractors and builders, urban planners, architects and engineers, suppliers, and other stakeholders.

ICEP’s three-day forum tackled the what’s and how’s of the Philippines’ infrastructure, mobility and connectivity development. The forum discussions included the Duterte Administration’s Infrastructure Plan #BuildBuildBuild launched by the Department of Public Works and Highways, Department of Transportation, the National Economic and Development Authority, and the Bases and Conversion and Development Authority. The “Build Build Build” program covers the development throughout the Philippines of new roads, bridges, green cities, urban mass transport, railways, seaports and airports.

The Armed Forces of the Philippines through the Department of National Defense also discussed measures to secure Philippine flagship projects, and the recently launched Development Support and Security Plan Kapayapaan (DSSP).

Funding for infrastructure and other projects were discussed by representatives from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas and the Department of Finance.

The Philippines’ recent economic performance reveals a robust and growing economy, but there is an obvious need for infrastructure development and connectivity to support and maintain such growth. In achieving this development goal, there are several opportunities for Business-to-Business (B2B), Government-to-Government (G2G) and public-private partnership collaborations. Channels for these collaborations need to be established and opened with events similar to ICEP. ICEP was organized by PEPTarsus Corporation, a trade event organizer. 

Platforms to discuss the country’s development plans, economic trajectory and private-sector participation are more relevant in light of the Philippines’ status as member-state of the Infrastructure Fund of the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN). The ASEAN Infrastructure Fund is the largest ASEAN-led financial initiative. 

A continuing platform for discussion and interaction is necessary to shape awareness and expectations. With events like ICEP, Filipinos and foreign investors, public and private sector participants can know what to expect from and how they can take part in achieving the Philippines’ Golden Age of Infrastructure. At the very least, Filipinos (like my car-loving corporate exec friend) will have more confidence to buy cars he can afford, knowing that he’ll have roads to drive them on.