BONTOC, Mountain Province – Some sixty-three road projects in the different parts of the region were endorsed to the secretaries of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) and the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) by the Cordillera Regional Development Council (RDC-CAR) for consideration, funding and implementation under the DTI-DPWH convergence program or the Roads Leveraging Linkages of Industry and Trade (ROLL IT) program.
The RDC-CAR noted the regional Technical Working Group (TWG) evaluated the submitted proposals based on the ROLL IT evaluation rating system and the 63 proposals passed the initial screening with 7 projects from Abra, 14 projects from Apayao, 7 projects from Benguet, 11 projects from Ifugao, 13 projects from Kalinga and 11 projects from Mountain Province.\
Subsequently, the RDC-CAR Executive Committee endorsed the 63 proposals by referendum on March 28, 2017, one of the major requirements by the evaluation system for inclusion in the priority list of projects to be funded under the convergence program.
Earlier, the DTI, DPWH and concerned local government units conducted validation of the proposed road projects to ascertain their compliance with the criteria adopted by the implementing agencies for inclusion in the final list of projects under the convergence program.
Both agencies require local government units in the region to submit road project proposals for consideration, funding, and implementation under the DTI-DPWH convergence program for the ROLL IT program.
The DTI-DPWH ROLL IT program is based on the successful implementation of the Department of Tourism and DPWH Tourism Road Infrastructure Program or (TRIP) which banked on the active participation of the private sector in promoting economic growth as well as infrastructure development in the region.
The DOT-DPWH convergence project was designed to develop tourism as a major contributor to economic growth in the countryside through the provision of roads leading to tourist destinations and as one of the successful programs, the TRIP has been retained as part of the infrastructure development programs under the Duterte administration.
The RDC-CAR pointed out the TRIP is seen to tandem with the ROLL IT program of DTI and DPWH to provide a more holistic development of the countryside.
Some 104 road project proposals were submitted by the local government units in the region for consideration, funding and implementation under the TRIP consisting of 10 projects from Abra, 4 projects from Apayao, 24 projects from Benguet; 28 projects from Ifugao, 16 projects from Kalinga and 16 projects from Mountain Province and 6 projects from Baguio city.
The RDC-CAR remains optimistic that the 63 projects under the ROLL IT program and the 104 projects under the TRIP will be considered for funding in the succeeding budgets of the national government in the next several years.
By HENT
