Dominguez in Tokyo infra roadshow

Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez and Yoshio Wada, the chief representative of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), signed the 104.53 billion yen loan agreement for the construction of the first phase of the Metro Manila Subway Project, which aims to ease traffic congestion, meet fast-rising transportation demand, and reduce air pollution in the country’s premier urban center. Dominguez and Pernia will lead members of the “Build, Build, Build” team in discussing the progress of the flagship projects.

A Philippine delegation led by Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III is going to Tokyo this week to share with potential investors the vibrant prospects for the country’s economy and continue high-level dialogues with Japanese ministry officials on the Duterte administration’s flagship infrastructure projects that it aims to implement in cooperation with Japan.

Scheduled on June 18 to 21, the Tokyo visit will include a Philippine Economic Briefing (PEB), the second to be held in Tokyo since last year, and the fifth regular meeting of the Philippines-Japan High-Level Committee on Infrastructure and Economic Cooperation.

According to Dominguez, the PEB, which will lay out the Duterte administration’s plan to sustain the Philippines’ status as one of the fastest-expanding economies in Asia and its programs for inclusive growth, will also “set the groundwork” for the deal roadshow that the government will roll out for its planned yen-denominated Samurai bonds issue.

Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea; Secretaries Ernesto Pernia of the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA), Benjamin Diokno of the Department of Budget and Management (DBM), Arthur Tugade of the Department of Transportation (DoTr), and Mark Villar of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH); Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Governor Nestor Espenilla Jr.; and Vivencio Dizon, president and CEO of the Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA), are expected to join Dominguez at the PEB scheduled on June 19.

While in Tokyo, Dominguez is also set to meet with officials from the Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MUFG), Nomura, Mizuho, Daiwa, and the Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (SMBC) to discuss the Philippines’ plan to float Samurai bonds by the third or fourth quarter of 2018.

He will also hold a separate meeting with officials of the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) to discuss possible areas of cooperation between the Philippines and the financial institution.

On June 20, Dominguez and Pernia will lead members of the “Build, Build, Build” team in discussing the progress of the flagship infrastructure projects that the Philippines is implementing with Japanese funding support, during the fifth meeting of the Philippines-Japan High-Level Committee on Infrastructure and Economic Cooperation.

The fifth high-level meeting will discuss how the two governments could further improve their cooperation and explore ways and measures to eliminate bottlenecks in loan processing and project implementation.

“We will look at our projects, to review the progress and to see if there are any bottlenecks we can eliminate,” Dominguez said.

Since convening for the first time in March 2017 in Tokyo, the joint committee has made substantial progress in terms of expediting the approval processes on both sides to facilitate Japanese financing of several of the Philippines’ big-ticket infrastructure projects.

Last March 16, as a result of the joint committee’s regular meetings, the Philippines and Japan signed the 104.53 billion yen loan agreement for the construction of the first phase of the Metro Manila Subway Project, the country’s first-ever underground rail system.

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