BACOLOD CITY — A business group leader here said road interconnectivity projects in Negros Occidental should be integrated to avoid duplication and fragmentation of projects.
Frank Carbon, regional governor of the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Western Visayas and Negros Island, on Monday said they would submit a position paper to the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) requesting that other agencies submit their respective connectivity projects.
He said the DILG, through its Local Road Network Development Plan (LRNDP), should integrate all other projects in the province.
These include those being implemented under the Konkreto at Ayos na Lansangan ang Daan tungo sa Pangkalahatang Kaunlaran (KALSADA) of the DILG; Roads Leveraging Linkages for Industry and Trade (ROLL IT) of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI); farm-to-market roads of the Department of Agriculture (DA); farm-to-mill roads of the Sugar Regulatory Administrations (SRA); tourism roads of the Department of Tourism (DOT); and other infrastructure projects of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH).
Carbon said fragmented projects would not serve the purpose, adding that money spent for these initiatives would not be maximized.
“Integration of interconnectivity projects of local government units in the province should be given consideration,” he said.
The ROLL IT project, jointly implemented by the DTI and DPWH, has an allocation of about PHP111 million for road network development in Negros Occidental funded under the 2018 General Appropriation Act.
The road projects, aimed to boost connectivity and lower production cost for enterprises particularly in transporting raw materials and finished goods, are up for implementation next year, covering the cities of San Carlos and Bago in the First and Fourth Districts, respectively. (Erwin Nicavera/PNA)
