GENERAL SANTOS CITY (MindaNews /10 Nov) — The Provincial Development Council (PDC) of South Cotabato has proposed some P251 million worth of additional development investments in various parts of the province for next year.
South Cotabato Gov. Daisy Avance-Fuentes said in a statement that the proposed investments were part of the priority development initiatives that were approved by the council under the province’s 2014 Annual Investment Program (AIP).
She said the PDC, which is the province’s highest development policy-making body, recently submitted the AIP to the provincial board for evaluation and final approval.
The PDC, which is headed by the governor, is composed of officials of the province’s 10 towns and lone city as well as leaders of peoples’ organizations and non-government organizations that are recognized or accredited by the local government.
“These are investments that complement with the basic services that we provide to our communities and we deem them as vital in terms of the development our marginalized areas,” Fuentes said.
The AIP, as defined in the guidelines on provincial/local planning and expenditure management and the budget operations manual for local government units (LGUs), is the annual slice of the local investment development program of the LGUs.
It constitutes the total resource requirements of the LGU consisting of the annual capital expenditures as well as the regular operating expenditures that will serve as basis for the preparation of the annual budget and supplemental appropriations.
Fuentes said the 2014 AIP focuses on four development sectors or components, specifically infrastructure, social, economic and environment.
She said the infrastructure component received the bulk of the appropriation with P153.138 million followed by economic with P49.1 million, social with P42 million and environment with P6.28 million.
The governor said the PDC also revised its supplemental AIP for this year worth P54 million to fund the implementation of various infrastructure projects.
“The 2013 supplemental AIP was revised due to the urgent need to pursue some vital projects such as the construction of horizontal infrastructure, road rehabilitation, construction of line canals, box culverts and other flood control structures,” Fuentes said.
Included in the revised AIP are the construction of the Sangguniang Panlalawigan offices; rehabilitation of the Lamdalag-Poblacion, Lake Sebu road; construction of box culvert in Sitio Lower Tucalabong in Barangay Crossing Rubber and rehabilitation of a box culvert in Barangay Palian in Tupi town; acquisition of 200 units of hospital beds with mattresses; completion of the line canal in Barangay New Panay and the rehabilitation of the Upper Sepaka-Kibang Road in Sto. Nino town; construction of reinforced concrete box culverts along barangays Danlag and Palo 19 Road in Tampakan town; construction of line canal in barangay Silway 7 and 8 as well as another line canal and reblocking of the Cannery Road in Polomolok town; construction of line canal in Barangay Lugan and the rehabilitation of a box culvert in Barangay Kematu, both in T’boli town; and, the rehabilitation of the Lam-afus Bridge approaches in Banga town.
She added that eight of these projects were funded by the current and trust funds of the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office. (MindaNews)