Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, January 9) — Senior diplomats of the Philippines and Japan exchanged notes Thursday for an additional ₱2 billion funding to make two Metro Manila bridges more resilient to earthquakes.
“The project will reinforce our bridges, bringing them to superior seismic design specifications and making them resilient to large-scale tremors,” Foreign Affairs Secretary Tedoro “Teddy Boy” Locsin, Jr. said in a joint press briefing with Japanese Foreign Minister Motegi Toshimitsu right after their first-ever bilateral meeting in Makati City on Thursday.
The seismic improvement project covers the Lambingan Bridge in Sta. Ana, Manila, and the Guadalupe Bridge which connects the cities of Makati and Mandaluyong. An initial loan agreement amounting to ¥9.78 billion (around ₱4.5 billion) was signed in August 2015, but implementation is extended until August 2023.
“The cost increase is due to changes in construction technology to be applied onto Guadalupe Bridge, the need for temporary detour bridges in Guadalupe, and the need for additional work shifts to the construction period, among others,” the Philippines’ Department of Foreign Affairs said in a statement.
“Japan, through JICA (Japan International Cooperation Agency), is thus providing a supplemental loan amount of ¥4,409,000,000 (around ₱2 billion),” it added.
Motegi said Japan wishes to help the Philippines in responding to natural calamities – a common challenge in the disaster-prone countries.
Locsin thanked Japan for its continued support of President Rodrigo Duterte’s infrastructure development program, including the construction of the Philippines’ first subway.
Locsin and Motegi also discussed a wide range of issues, including the West Philippine Sea and regional security amid the dispute with China, rising tensions in the Middle East, and the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula.
LOOK: Foreign Affairs Secretary @teddyboylocsin and Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi exchange diplomatic notes on Metro Manila bridges projects | @TristanNodalo pic.twitter.com/HO6qByr7xo
— CNN Philippines (@cnnphilippines) January 9, 2020
