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Manila Bulletin devider Business devider The Economy devider PPP Center eyes more local PPPs through new LGU guidelines

PPP Center eyes more local PPPs through new LGU guidelines

Published Jun 18, 2026 05:24 pm

SINGAPORE — The Public-Private Partnership (PPP) Center is pushing for more local infrastructure PPP projects, as an upcoming joint memorandum circular (JMC) with the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) is expected to guide local government units (LGUs) in tapping private-sector participation.

PPP Center Executive Director Rizza Blanco-Latorre told reporters on the sidelines of the Asia Infrastructure Forum (AIF) 2026 last Wednesday, June 17, that the agency has completed a draft of the proposed JMC, which would guide LGUs in implementing projects under the PPP Code of the Philippines, enacted in 2023, and its implementing rules and regulations (IRR), which took effect in 2024.

“We have submitted it [the draft JMC] to the DILG for their review and comments, and we’re about to set a schedule with them to sit down and discuss the improvements that they would recommend,” Blanco-Latorre said.

According to Blanco-Latorre, the PPP Center aims to have the JMC finalized and issued within the second half of 2026, preferably in the third quarter, so the agency could spend the remainder of this year cascading the guidelines to LGUs.

“We observed that many LGUs still do not know that there is the PPP Code that they can actually use as a framework to deliver their projects through PPPs,” despite the government’s training and capacity-building activities, she said.

The PPP Center chief said the forthcoming JMC would outline the sectors that may be covered by PPPs, establish the PPP Code as the unified framework for local projects, as well as provide LGUs with access to templates and best-practice documents already available on the agency’s website.

The JMC will also define coordination mechanisms between the PPP Center and the DILG to help LGUs navigate project development, she added.

Blanco-Latorre said the initiative forms part of a broader effort to increase the number of local PPP projects and make their geographic distribution more balanced.

To date, the country has 251 PPP projects in various stages of development, approval, procurement, and implementation, with a combined cost of about ₱3.1 trillion, the latest PPP Center data showed.

Of the total, 166 PPP projects are national in scope, while only 85 are local projects.

The disparity is more pronounced in terms of value, with local PPP projects accounting for just ₱133 billion of the country’s ₱3.1-trillion PPP pipeline.

“Most of them [PPP projects] are in Luzon, in NCR [National Capital Region],” Blanco-Latorre said, adding that: “We want to see projects coming from Visayas, from Mindanao.”

While achieving parity between national and local PPP projects will take time, Blanco-Latorre said the PPP Center hopes to narrow the gap through capacity-building initiatives and stronger partnerships with government institutions.

The PPP Center has been conducting training programs for national government (NG) agencies as well as LGUs’ implementing bodies while partnering with regional offices of the Department of Economy, Planning, and Development (DEPDev) to expand its reach, she noted.

Blanco-Latorre said feedback from LGU officials has been encouraging, citing a recent engagement with around 60 mayors under the Mayors for Good Governance initiative, where participants expressed interest in pursuing PPP projects but needed guidance on how to begin.

“We observed that whenever we do these engagements, there are many ideas from the LGUs. But because they do not know how [and] where to start, the ideas die,” the PPP Center chief said.

“That’s why it’s important to have the JMC to actually guide them throughout the process,” she added.

Apart from the JMC, Blanco-Latorre said a separate work stream involving the PPP Center, the DILG, and the Department of Health (DOH) is focused on helping LGUs pursue health-sector PPP projects.

She said the initiative came on the back of a discussion between President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. and the Private Sector Advisory Council’s (PSAC) healthcare sector last May.

Blanco-Latorre said some public health centers had already been built but remained idle or underutilized because LGUs did not know how to operate them.

“The private sector is willing to help provide their expertise in operating and maintaining these health centers,” she added.

The PPP Center chief said the JMC being crafted with the DILG will cover all sectors, not just health, as LGUs also explore PPP projects in areas like energy, solid waste management, waste-to-energy (WtE), and water.

During AIF 2026, Blanco-Latorre pitched four local PPP projects to potential investors: Iligan Solid Waste Management Project, Samal City Circular Economy Solutions, Enhancement of Solid Waste Collection, Recovery, and Disposal System of Zamboanga City, as well as Iloilo City Eco Hub.

Blanco-Latorre said investor interest in local PPP projects remains encouraging, noting that global investors and development institutions continue to express interest in supporting well-prepared and bankable projects.

She said the challenge is not a lack of available capital but the need to develop projects that are properly structured as well as ready for investment, adding that development partners have been helping LGUs improve project preparation and capacity.

Related Tags

Public-Private Partnership (PPP) Center public-private partnership (PPP) Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) local government units (LGUs) Public-Private Partnership (PPP) Code of the Philippines Rizza Blanco-Latorre
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