DBP launches financing program for sanitation

MANILA, Philippines - The Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) has launched a financing program that seeks to protect and promote public health and preserve water resources in the country.

In fact, it already set aside an initial amount of P600 million for the program, with pipeline projects in Kalibo, Roxas City, Iloilo City, Bacolod City, San Jose Del Monte City, San Pablo City, Tagum City and Isabela City.

DBP president and chief executive officer Francisco F. Del Rosario Jr. said the Financing Program for the Sanitation Sector (FPSS) aims to complement the national government’s plans and programs for the protection and preservation of water resources, and the protection and promotion of public health. ?       

He added that the program also aims to promote good governance by providing financing assistance to local government units (LGUs) and water districts for them to comply with Republic Act (RA) 9275 or the Clean Water Act, and the order of the Supreme Court for the clean-up, rehabilitation, and preservation of several bodies of water. ?       

The program particularly seeks to reduce the incidence of water-borne diseases arising from unsanitary practices and improper sewerage and septage management; increase the number of households, establishments, institutions and factories with access to sewerage and septage systems; and help the country achieve its Millennium Development Goals (MDG) that target to halve by 2015, the proportion of number of people without sustainable access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation. ?       

The program will fund the development of sanitation services and facilities and the collection, transport, treatment, and disposal of waste water.  Eligible expenditures under the FPSS include project preparation activities, capital expenditures, working capital requirement and interest during construction. ? 

Recently, DBP received an award for environmental development citing its partnership with Boracay Island Water Co. Inc. (BIWC) and Security Bank Corp. for the company’s environmental projects in Boracay. The Association of Development Financing Institutions in Asia and the Pacific (ADFIAP) extended the award in recognition for DBP’s efforts in promoting water sustainability.