President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Monday led the groundbreaking of the Caticlan Passenger Terminal Building (PTB) of the Godofredo P. Ramos Airport in Caticlan, Aklan.

According to Marcos, once completed, the new facility would open up the Philippines to more tourists who want a destination outside Manila.

“We are very happy and we are all very excited that we are slowly putting together the building blocks of our policy of opening up our areas—tourist areas, our business areas, to international travelers without having to go through the Manila Airport,” he said.

He emphasized that Caticlan is a key passageway to many tourist destinations.

“From here, they can go to Boracay, they can go around and see all of the tourist destinations. There are many tourist destinations. We can see all of the tourist destinations around the province and in the neighboring areas,” he said.

“And so, it is not something that just belongs to one province. It is not just Aklan that is involved in this, it is the entire region that will be assisted by the construction of this terminal building. The influx of people, of travelers, is going to be a big boost to the local economy and, I might add, the national economy,” he added.

The construction of the new building will be done by Megawide Construction Corporation at a cost of P2.5 billion.

The PTB will be operated by San Miguel Corporation (SMC) through its subsidiary Trans Aire Development Holdings Corp. in partnership with the Department of Transportation (DoTr).

Once completed, the PTB is expected to accommodate up to seven million passengers annually, enhancing travel efficiency and comfort for Boracay visitors and Western Visayas tourists.

The project is expected to be completed by December 2026.

Marcos teased the SMC leadership and the Megawide constructors about finishing the terminal ahead of schedule.

“It is already, it is already in my schedule, 24 months, I am coming to cut the ribbon. If you can build it in 18 months, I won’t complain,” he said. “I was telling the CEO of Megawide, ‘You have no excuse because I’ve seen your other projects. You did it, even more complicated constructions than this.’ This is a relatively simple one.”

“The more complicated construction projects that Megawide has undertaken, they have finished on budget and on time. So, that is what we are hoping for and are looking forward to,” he added.

He also lauded the local government of Aklan for helping the national government secure the right of way and address challenges the project faced.

“If it weren't for the local government, both on the provincial and the municipal side—if it weren't for your help—we wouldn't be able to do it and we wouldn't be able to build the road that would require expropriation or negotiation. And we always turn to local governments to help us,” Marcos said.

“And once again, that has been fruitful, and it just goes to show—exactly like the governor has said, when the national government, the local government, and the private sector work together hand in hand, not on opposite sides, but hand in hand, this is what we can achieve,” he added.