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MANILA, Philippines - Already saddled with runway congestion, a project meant to ease air traffic at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) has yet to fly because of the government's failure to provide counterpart funding.
The P13.272 billion Communications Navigation Surveillance/Air Traffi Management (CNS/ATM) Systems Development Project remains under review, Transport Undersecretary Rene K. Limcaoco told reporters on the sidelines of the 45th Annual Meeting of the Asian Development Bank Board of Governors.
"That is, as previously stated, is under study. We've gotten a consultant to conduct the study and so the final decision will have to await the review of the consultant," Limcaoco said.
He said the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) consequently has yet to extend the loan validity of the project, which is funded by official development assistance (ODA).
Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) approved a P9.586 billion loan for the project as early as 2003. The project was supposed to be completed in 2007. JICA and the Philippine government have since extended the deadline to June 2013.
According to the Project Monitoring Staff of the National Economic and Development Authority, less than 10 percent of the civil works had been completed because the DOTC has yet to provide counterpart funding.
The project involves putting in place equipment that would enable NAIA to comply with the standards of the International Civil Aviation Organization.
In recent weeks, NAIA has been hit by flight delays because of congestion at its runway. The DOTC already asked local carriers to cut down on the number of flights as a short-term remedy.
The government and local airlines are meeting on Thursday to thresh out the matter.
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