THE Cebu Provincial Government is reviving the long-stalled Mega Cebu blueprint, with Governor Pamela Baricuatro pushing for the creation of an integrated water management system to address worsening flooding and looming water scarcity across Metro Cebu.
Baricuatro, who now chairs the Regional Development Council (RDC) in Central Visayas, announced the move on Tuesday, November 11, 2025, following the widespread flooding brought by Typhoon Tino that affected several towns in the province.
She said the initiative will be tabled before the RDC’s Infrastructure Committee to prioritize the inclusion of a provincewide water management system.
The plan forms part of the Mega Cebu Sustainable Urban Development Master Plan crafted in 2015, which envisioned a coordinated approach among local governments to manage water resources, prevent floods, and control urban sprawl.
A plan lost to political limbo
The Mega Cebu Development and Coordination Board (MCDCB), established during the administration of former governor Hilario Davide III and the late business leader Bobby Aboitiz, served as the central coordinating body for the plan.
However, the board has not been convened since January 2020, halting efforts to integrate flood control and water management projects among Metro Cebu’s cities and municipalities.
With the MCDCB inactive, implementation of flood control measures fell mainly to the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), which operated without the inter-local coordination that the board previously provided.
Critics have also linked some flood control projects to corruption, further eroding public trust in infrastructure solutions.
Push for cooperation and accountability
Baricuatro said reviving the Mega Cebu framework is critical to ensure a unified response to the region’s worsening water and flooding problems.
The Provincial Government’s own development plan from 2018 to 2028 had already adopted “cluster development” and “urban limits” to guide land use, but enforcement has lagged.
“The goal is to restore inter-local cooperation and ensure that water management becomes a shared responsibility,” Baricuatro said.
Her push signals a return to the collaborative model that once defined Mega Cebu, a move seen as crucial in confronting the region’s fragmented urban growth, inadequate drainage systems, and mounting risks from climate-related disasters. (CDF)