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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider Visayas devider NIA says Iloilo mega dam project above board

NIA says Iloilo mega dam project above board

Published Sep 1, 2025 12:51 pm  |  Updated Sep 1, 2025 01:02 pm
ONE of the three major dams under the Jalaur River Multi-Purpose Project-Stage II (JRMP-II) in Calinog, Iloilo. (Tara Yap)
ONE of the three major dams under the Jalaur River Multi-Purpose Project-Stage II (JRMP-II) in Calinog, Iloilo. (Tara Yap)
ILOILO CITY – After complaints were filed against a South Korean bank and contractor of the mega dam project in Iloilo province, the National Irrigation Administration (NIA) denied allegations of human rights and environmental violations.
“We were above board in terms of environmental and social compliances including social services and livelihood and income restoration of affected families,” said Steve Cordero, spokesperson of NIA-6 for the Jalaur River Multi-Purpose Project-Stage II (JRMP-II).
The JRMP-II is a flagship project of NIA in the town of Calinog where three dams and reservoirs were built.
Last week, Filipino and South Korean activists filed a case against the South Korean bank for financing the loans of the JRMP-II’s construction and contractor Daewoo Engineering & Construction Co. Ltd.
Around P8.2 billion of the initial P11.2-billion fund for the construction of the JRMP-II was a loan secured by the Philippine government from the Korean Export-Import Bank (KEXIM) through the Economic Development Cooperation Fund (EDCF).
“The Korean EDCF has an Environmental and Social Safeguards Monitoring team that has been monitoring the project since 2014 on a quarterly basis until December 2024, to ensure that we are compliant with the EDCF safeguard policy,” Cordero told Manila Bulletin.
Cordero said that the environmental issue had been resolved when the Writ of Kalikasan was junked by the Court of Appeals in 2015.
The NIA-6 said it was baseless to blame the JRMP-II for the death of nine Panay Bukidnon Indigenous Peoples (IPs) during a December 2020 police raid on alleged hotspots New People’s Army (NPA) rebels.
The JRMP-II was scheduled to be completed by the end of the term of President Benigno S. Aquino III. Until now, it is not operating despite the inauguration last July by President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.
Construction of the JRMP-II is ongoing as canals connecting the three dams are still being constructed.

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Iloilo JRMP-II Calinog
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