Three high-impact projects under the Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA) have been endorsed to the American and Japanese Investors in the Luzon Economic Corridor plan.
In a statement on Monday, April 22, the BCDA said the top projects listed were the Subic-Clark Railway Project (SCRP), the Clark International Airport (CIA) Expansion, and the Clark National Food Hub.
Because of the endorsement from the US and Japan, BCDA President and Chief Executive Officer Joshua Bingcang expressed his optimism that Clark metropolis could be Asia’s next investment hub.
“We are confident that the inclusion of SCRP, expansion of Clark International Airport, and the Clark National Food Hub in the proposed Luzon Economic Corridor will help us accelerate the implementation of these game-changing infrastructure projects, not just for the country but for the whole Indo-Pacific region,” he said.
The SCRP is a collaborative project between the state-run firm and the Department of Transportation. Once finished, this would help with the freight services to transport commodities between the Subic Bay Freeport Zone and the Clark Freeport and Special Economic Zone.
The railway project would also link Subic Port with Clark International Airport and other major economic areas in Central Luzon like the New Clark City.
Other developments, like the expansion of the CIA would construct a second runway, taxiways, aprons, and landside access roads and utilities that would cater to major logistics firms within the Clark area.
Finally, through the BCDA subsidiary, the Clark International Airport Corp. will soon construct a 64-hectare Clark National Food Terminal Hub to support the Philippines and the Clark region into a leading agricultural resource hub.
These developments listed in the Luzon Economic Corridor are investments that would enhance the economic collaboration, which forms part of the group of seven (G7) Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment (PGII).
The G7 comprises France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United States, the United Kingdom, and Canada.
After the recent trilateral meeting between the US, Philippines, and Japan in Washington, Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., US President Joe Biden, and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida stated that their joint partnership for the first PGII corridor in the Indo-Pacific, the Luzon Economic Corridor would pursue Subic Bay, Clark, Manila, and Batangas connectivity.
“Through this corridor, part of the Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment-IPEF Accelerator, Japan, the Philippines, and the United States commit to accelerating coordinated investments in high-impact infrastructure projects,” they said in a joint statement.
The G7 PGII would help advance public and private investments through sustainability, inclusivity, and resiliency, and produce quality infrastructure by deploying $600 billion in three years, or 2027.
The three projects are BCDA’s contribution to the efforts to boost sustainability and inclusive economic growth, as lead by the Special Assistant to the President for Investment and Economic Affairs Frederick Go.