TACLOBAN CITY– High-impact infrastructure projects that will reduce poverty incidence in Eastern Samar were highlighted by the Department of Public Works and Highways Eastern Samar District Engineering Office (DPWH-ESDEO) during the 1st Eastern Visayas Infrastructure Summit (EVIS) in Summit Hotel, Tacloban from August 30 to September 1, 2023.
District Engineer Alvin A. Ignacio mentioned that DPWH ESDEO prioritizes infrastructure road projects that connect Eastern Samar to the primary road and nearby provinces in Samar Island.
“Once these road projects connecting to Samar and Northern Samar are realized, hopefully Eastern Samar will not be a part of the country’s top ten poorest provinces anymore,” said DE Ignacio.
The District Engineer is referring to Maydolong-Basey road, which will become the shortest route from Borongan to Tacloban; Carolina, Can-avid-Dolores-Maslog-Jipapad Road and Catumsan, Arteche-Jipapad-Las Navas-Catubig Rawis Road which will provide easy way leading to Allen, Northern Samar, a vital transit point of goods and services going to Luzon.
Also included in the Infrastructure Development Plan of Eastern Samar are the Borongan Diversion Road, which will ease traffic in Borongan City proper, and the Pagnamitan Bridge in Guiuan, Eastern Samar, which will provide a secure, expedient, and disaster-resilient route for the traveling public to boost the tourism industry.
The DPWH Regional Office, in partnership with the National Economic Development Authority (NEDA), hosted the event, which was participated by all DPWH District Engineering Office in Region VIII.
Also present during the event were the district representatives in Eastern Visayas who listened to the priority infrastructure projects in their respective jurisdictions.
Rep. Jude Acidre of the Tingog party-list said that the first EVIS is a platform to create a single voice for the region and tell the national government what the region needs, what the department can do, and how good infrastructure will proper Eastern Visayas toward long-term economic development.
“Looking at the projects ahead of us, what you’ve planned for the region, it is proof that we are capable of doing world-class infrastructure in this part of the country — only if we work together, only if we put our minds together, and if we work together in securing funding for these projects,” said Acidre.
The infrastructure summit also conducted lectures on the critical stages in the implementation of infra projects, such as the Planning and Budget Preparation Process, Procurement Processes, Construction Project Management, Policy Guidelines on the Maintenance of National Roads and Bridges, Policies on Right-of-Way and Easement Management , Guidelines and Procedure in the Preparation of Program of Works, and Social Impact Assessment and Issuances of Environmental Compliance Certificates and Certificates of Non Coverage, and other vital topics in DPWH key promises.
Moreover, the event’s main features include presentations from the Regional Office and 14 District Engineering Offices showcasing their outputs.
These include a 10-minute audio-visual display of the Infrastructure Network Development Plan (INDP) Master Plan for 2023-2028, an exhibit of three priority projects, and a presentation of the outputs from the workshop session on the planning and design of five multi-year high-impact priority projects. (PR)
